Shot In the Dark
by The Light Holder
Summary: I can bring you back to life but matters of the heart... that's just a shot in the dark.
1. It Begins

**Hey, people. So, like many others, my SYOTs got deleted. I guess that's why I sort of 'disguised' this one by not mentioning SYOT in the title or summary. **

**I want to make this as much in the guidelines as possible. So send your tribute in through PM and no chapters are going to be completely lists or author's notes. I'm kinda afraid to put this up but SYOTs seem to be getting back to normal again now so…. Yeah…. And I was gonna put the form on my profile but I decided not to 'cause I'm weird like that.**

**The title is 'Shot In the Dark' from the song Shot In The Dark by Emma-Lee. I love that song! And the title doesn't really have much to do with the arena. **

**Okay, I want some really interesting tributes! I don't want **_**any **_**normal tributes! Druggie! Alcoholic! Blind! Mute! I DON'T CARE, just make 'em interesting!**

**Oh, bee tee dubs, I'm not trying to be racist or anything, but if you want a tribute to be specifically from District Eleven, can they please be African-American? The Eleven tributes in this SYOT are going to be African-American no matter what anyways….**

**So here's yo form:**

Name:

Gender:

Age:

District (top three):

Appearance:

Famous Person They Resemble (like an actor or model they resemble):

Personality:

History:

Family:

Friends:

Reaping Outfit:

Reaped or Volunteered:

Reaped Reaction:

Volunteered Why:

Interview Angle:

Strengths:

Weaknesses:

Fears:

Alliance?:

Romance?:

Careers?:

Song That Fits Them and How:

Token:

**Sorry that it's so annoyingly long, but I wanna really be able to see who your tribute is.**

**I can't have a chapter without some kind of little story thing, so here:**

President Lilian watches the Gamemakers, admiring the arena they have put together, and she does not glance or even look their way when they anxiously glance at her to see the reaction. This is by far one of Lilian's favorite arenas…

Her blood-red lips curl into faint smile and she sharply turns around. President Lilian takes a step forward to the Head Gamemaker, Udell.

"Good job," she whispers, lightly patting his shoulder and walking away.

**Now submit, submit, submit! :)**

**And may the odds be ever in your favor! (smiles at random wall)**


	2. Tribute List

**IT'S FULL! (kazoo and confetti party)**

District One

Male: Baron Kiol, age 14, submitted by The Koala of Doom

Female: Ayame Wolfe, age 15, submitted by Midnight Ink

District Two

Male: Stone Walcott, age 18, submitted by LoveIsBlindness

Female: Howl Draconix, age 12, submitted by incubiis

District Three

Male: Jax Hood, age 17, submitted by kitkat1425

Female: Amanda Leigh, age 18, submitted by Dakota96

District Four

Male: Max Leo, age 18, submitted by IssiRocksYourSocksOff

Female: Isabella "Bella" Rue, age 17, submitted by IssiRocksYourSocksOff

District Five

Male: Jace Leighton, age 16, submitted by Miss Mockingjay

Female: Solstice Hart, age 14, submitted by Lou the Third

District Six

Male: Viktor Blake, age 17. submitted by xxxClovexxx

Female: Kaya Copper, age 16, submitted by kitkat1425

District Seven

Male: Skander Dagwood, age 17, submitted by Lou the Third

Female: Luciana Sage, age 12, submitted by the epic bookworm

District Eight

Male: Wyatt James, age 15, submitted by the epic bookworm

Female: Mellow Monack, age 16, submitted by window16

District Nine

Male: Arlin Tainte, age 16, submitted by Rose Hunter

Female: Lace Chandler, age 15, submitted by cobaltx90

District Ten

Male: Mackenzie "Mack" Taner, age 16, submitted by Fuzzycat901

Female: Jordan Smith, age 16, submitted by Fuzzycat901

District Eleven

Male: Michante Hark, age 17, submitted by CommanderDataReportingForDuty

Female: Willow Lockett, age 13, submitted by LoveIsBlindness

District Twelve

Male: Ren Hanapon, age 13, submitted by window16

Female: Riveann "River" Booe, age 17, submitted by KatnissBooePrescott180

**EEEEEEE! IT'S FULL!**

**THANKS SO MUCH, Y'ALL!**

**Anyhow, I'm gonna explain how this will work. It isn't that confusing, actually, but still.**

**So, I'm gonna do the Reapings in one big-ish chapter. That just seems to get them out of the way faster. Because EVERYBODY hates the Reapings!**

**And for the Games, which are a loooong time away, I don't pick myself who's going to die. I pick names out of a hat. But if you don't review for a while, your tribute dies.**

**I think that's it. Huh. I thought I had more stuff to say.**

**Oh, well. Remember: that is mahogany!**

**May the odds be ever in your favor!**

**~RuexxRoses**


	3. The Reapings

**EEEE! Time to write the Reapings! I am so, so excited!**

**Yeah, so, we have quite a dysfunctional group of tributes. Two mutes and one blind! xD**

**Just so you know, some POVs will be long and some will be short. And some will be medium-sized. It all matters on the backstory and things I want to explain. Some of your tributes won't have their history explained at all, because I think it would be better to explain it later on. There are two or three POVs that are REALLY short, but don't hurt me! **

**Also, there are two tributes that won't have a POV or be mentioned in this chapter because well, I haven't gotten them yet. But I will try my best to introduce them during the Train Rides and Chariots!**

**Bee tee dubs, this is the 98****th**** Hunger Games! I am not sure if I ever mentioned that before…. And I didn't put it in the title because that might make the admins be like SYOT! Come to think of it, I should erase 'closed' off the summary…**

**So, let us start!**

**District One**

**Ayame Wolfe's POV**

I have watched all of my life. I have never fought for myself, just watched helplessly, emotionlessly, as three of my siblings sealed their fate. One of them did not want to. He wanted to live. He had a future. He had _dreams_.

Koda. His name sends an immense shiver of guilt and sadness down my spine.

My parents had six children. Now they only have three, counting me. My parents make my siblings and I volunteer at age fifteen. _It's a tradition_, they say, _we have done everything for you and you need to repay us_, they say. But all that they're going to end up with is the blood of six children on their shoulders.

"Ayame!" a younger voice squeals, running into my room. I glance at my reflection in the large mirror. I am pretty tall and slim, with crimson hair that falls to my shoulders in curls and bright blue eyes that show all the hope I don't have. I force my face into a smile and look at my twelve-year-old sister, Sapphire. I don't enjoy Sapphire much. My parents _love _her because she's a monster.

"Yes?" I question loudly. Sapphire narrows her eyes into slivers and grins a sadistic smile that you would see on a wolf, not a twelve-year-old child.

"Today you get to volunteer!" Sapphire says happily, giggling. I nod my head. Yes. I am fifteen years old and now it's my turn to volunteer for the Hunger Games. "I can't wait until _I'm _fifteen and _I _get to volunteer," Sapphire says, biting on her lip whilst no doubt imagining the blood she will cause to flow.

I simply smile in response.

"We should probably go soon, don't you think?" a new voice says, limping into the room. My older brother, Zane. He was supposed to volunteer last year but he injured his leg during training and is now waiting until he is recovered.

I swallow nervously, beaming upwards as Sapphire giddily leads me outside, where my parents are waiting.

"Ayame, today is your day," Father whispers to me excitedly. But I see straight through him. He doesn't care for me. He just wants the fame that comes attached to being a victor.

My deceased sibling's lives flash in bold lights before my eyes. Emerald, killed in the final seven when the Careers split and the boy from Eight speared her in the throat. Cliff, killed on the second day by his fellow Careers. Koda, who was only twelve. He was reaped. Killed on Day Seven by the brutal pair from Seven.

My fate awaits me.

**Baron Kiol's POV**

I wanted to volunteer when I was twelve. That stupid boy, Cliff Wolfe, volunteered before me. He died on the second day.

Weakling.

I tried to volunteer again when I was thirteen. An eighteen-year-old volunteered before me. He managed to squeeze himself into third place before being stabbed in the back by the female from Five.

Now, when I am fourteen, there is nothing that can stop me. I am unbreakable, untouchable; nobody will be able to kill me. Nobody will be able to even bruise me.

"Good luck," my little sister, Valentina, whispers to me. I kiss her on the top of her head, making her smile before rushing off. My finger is pricked but I do not even feel the pain. I lick the blood off of my finger and smile at the salty essence of it.

I have always sat in the same spot for the Reaping. The second row, three spots left to the railing. I take my seat, as nobody is stupid enough to sit in it.

A girl that I'm rather friendly with, Gerra, sits next to me. We scoff at the stupid Capitol video and she yawns loudly while the escort explains the dark days and history of Panem that led to this Reaping, earning us dirty looks from the mayor.

"First, let us pick our female tribute," the escort says, smiling adoringly at the crowd. She thinks that everyone is in _love _with her when really, everybody loathes the ground she walks on.

"Juna Calbert!" a fourteen-year-old girl with platinum hair stands.

"I volunteer!" someone screeches in a dry, desperate tone. My eyes fall onto a pretty redhead in the fifteen-year-old section that is wearing a sweet white dress. She glares at people with wide doe-like blue eyes. This girl looks so sweet and proper; that will surely be used to her advantage. "Lovely. What's your name, dear?" the escort asks her. She answers in a pure, clean voice. "Ayame Wolfe."

Wolfe? Hm. Could this girl be related to the boy that stole my chance to volunteer at age twelve? They don't look much alike; she is far better-looking.

The escort pulls out a slip for the male and reads the name in a monotone. A rather slinky boy stands from the thirteen-year-olds.

"I volunteer!" I shout.

**District Two**

**Howl Draconix's POV**

_Kill._

I send an arrow through the stuffed, ragged dummy's heart, watching with deep pleasure as some of the white fluff floods out.

_Kill!_

A knife flies through the second dummy's head, narrowly missing my brother's chest.

"Well, well, well, Howl, aren't we feisty today?" Azael says, laughing as he takes a few steps closer to me. I ignore, him, sending a second knife towards the dummy. The sharp point hits its stomach.

"I'm going to volunteer today," I say with a wicked grin. The only thing that I want to do is murder my brother when he raises a dark eyebrow. "Howl, you do know that you are only twelve years old, right?" he says, a small hint of laughter in his voice. "You're a mere child."

"I'm a _vicious _one at that," I hiss, stepping around my brother. "You'll see… I _will _prove you all wrong… you'll all see," with a cackle, I leap out of the training room in the back of my house.

Both my father and my brother are victors. My mother and father had high hopes for me until they saw my light weight and small height of four feet and nine inches, exactly. What does that mean? To them, it means that I would be a bloodbath. To _me, _it means that I can get around the arena swiftly, throwing a knife into so-and-so's neck every now and then.

I'll kill everyone.

I was born to kill. Why can't anyone see that?

I dress myself in a coral-toned dress with a high collar, framing my snowy-white face with a pointed chin. I leave my hair alone; black and falls in waves to my shoulders.

"I'm ready," I interrupt my parent's conversation roughly, stepping in the middle of them. I am less than half of my father's size and a bit more than half of my mother's. They exchange stares before warily nodding at me. I want to kill them… why can't they see me? I'm important. They should notice me… they _should_.

I'll kill them, too!

Nobody will be left except for me. But I don't really need anyone, so that will not be a problem.

Time flies past me until I am seating myself far away from the other shaking twelve-year-olds. I want to snort at all of their pure stupidity. Most of them have been trained so why are they seemingly terrified?

They are nothing like me. They are all weak while I'm strong.

The escort, a man with curly golden hair, shows us a useless video. My breath becomes quick and heavy with excitement as he reaches into the bowl. "Kat Deeler!"

"I volunteer!" I screech.

**District Three**

**Jax Hood's POV**

Sunlight hits my face, effectively waking me up from my peaceful sleep.

Damnit.

Where am I? Searching the area as the hazy coating leaves my eyes, I see that I am in the factory in which I work for most of the day. I don't actually need the money, but it is my only option if I want to escape my parents.

They still live at the home in which I briefly stay at every day, of course, but I do whatever I can to avoid them. If I can't avoid them, they will hurt me.

They hurt me every chance they get.

As I stand, my knee aches from the uncomfortable position that I fell asleep in. I suppose I should be skeptical of why my boss allows me to stay after hours. But he does, and that's all that really matters in the end. The cracked mirror shows my dirty reflection. Messy blonde hair lies on top of my head; I brush it back and it looks slightly better. I am wearing a dark shirt and black pants, which I guess are now my Reaping clothes.

Alone, I head off to the square.

Always alone.

**Amanda Leigh's POV**

Ha, look at that lady coming towards me! She is so _ugly_! And fat. Oh, wait, that's my mother. _I have a mother_? When did this happen? Why didn't anyone tell me? I always thought I was an orphan. Apparently not. She just touched me!

"Lay off, fat woman!" I screech, launching a bobby-pin at her. It lands squarely in her eye and she squeals.

I am off to the carnival! A girl with red straw on her head, comparable to fire, trots over to me. "Would you like to walk to the Reaping with me?" she asks politely. Who is even polite these days? Robots, that's who! "What's a Reaping?" I ask.

"For the Hunger Games…"

"What are you _talking _about?" I scream. My blood pulses and I feel dizzy. I don't know what they are talking about! This doesn't make any sense!

"Amanda Leigh!" Oh, God, it's another ugly woman!

I stare at the stage so far away from me. Did the girl with the fiery hair plot this? I think she did. I am positive that she plotted this entire thing! She met with the President, didn't she? Yes. She is going to steal my teddy bear! That reminds me; I take out my teddy and hug him.

"Ms. Leigh, please come with us," ugly men say. They grab onto me and pull me into the mush pot! I scream at the top of my lungs to no avail.

I am a tribute now, according to the ugly woman.

What's a tribute?

**District Four**

**Isabella "Bella" Rue's POV**

"Forever?" My whisper is fragile.

I hate how it sounds.

She smiles wearily at me, her breath shallow. "Forever."

I smile back.

A knock at the door. I hate how it sounds. The knock is impatient; hard and quick.

My mother's head peeks through the door timidly. "Bella? April? We should probably get going to the Reaping."

I nod at the slight command-sounding suggestion. My mother sends a swift nod towards my sister and I and walks out the door, not bothering to close it as I will be out shortly.

My sister is dying. It is from a disease with a strange name and that has apparently never been cured. Her name is April, like the month. She said that we're going to be sisters forever; no matter what happens to her or me.

I help her up, though she firmly states that she can walk by herself. I'm not so sure.

"You look beautiful," I say in a hushed whisper to April. She simply smiles at me with that thin line.

"Go," my father's words are harsh, but I follow.

**Max Leo's POV**

My dad's blood still lies on a sheet, splattered in thick marks; deep and red.

I'm not a bad person. He was about to hurt me. He was drunk, like he _always _was. I was only eleven and he raised a broken bottle at me. I didn't want to get hurt. So I kicked him, _hard_, in the shin, making him a stumble a few steps back. Then I broke the bottle into his skull. I brought it to his forehead almost twenty times, smashing it long after the light had faded from his eyes. He fell into a white sheet, staining it red.

I replaced the sheet because I, for some odd reason, wanted to keep the real one. It comforts me, in a sick way.

My alibi was that I had gone on a trip to a friend's house. I came home hours later to find my mother and sister in hysterics over the murder.

My mother is still in hysterics. But he hurt her… She is always mumbling things about love. How can you love somebody that hurt you?

I know the girl that is reaped. Her name is April Rue. She is eighteen years old and rather weak from all those years of chemotherapy and such. Her younger sister, Isabella, volunteers for her.

The male is reaped.

It's me.

**District Five**

**Solstice Hart's POV**

Have you ever done something that was very possibly the stupidest thing you will ever do in your life?

I have.

My father caused a stir of a rebellion when he was alive. He was a victor but I didn't fully know about that yet. I was an only child and my mother had already been killed as a punishment for my father's rebellious acts. He did not stop, no matter what they threatened. One day, when I was merely twelve years old, I came home and he was gone.

Peacekeepers captured me and I was transported to the Capitol. I remember someone pressing a needle into my flesh and me blacking out. When I came back to my senses, It was the next day and my mouth was unbearably sore. I tried to speak but something was wrong.

They had turned me into an Avox.

It was awful at first, not being able to speak. I helped the stylists mostly, and it was a rather boring job. First, I helped the District Ten stylists, who were nice but idiotic people. Then I was transferred to the Five stylists; they didn't like me very much at all.

An old woman took pity on me. Just a thirteen-year-old Avox, suffering from her father's wrong acts. So she somehow convinced the officials in charge of Avoxes into letting me _retire_ and live with her.

After six months, I ran back to District Five. I could not stand not knowing if anybody knew about me. I could not stand not knowing if I had any family left. That is my biggest regret; running away from my safe haven.

It turns out that I actually did have my cousin's family to stay with. They have never fully trusted me, but that is understandable.

"Sol?" my cousin's son, Finn, says quietly, steadily standing, perched on his toes, in my doorway. I turn to him and perk my head up so he understands I have acknowledged him. "Are you ready?"

I nod. He solemnly sets his expression into a scowl, twisting on his heel to walk outside. I trot over to him, giving his shoulder a hard squeeze of support. He is two years younger than me and this is his very first Reaping; his younger brother Sawyer has three years until his first Reaping.

I wish I was still with the old woman, safe and sound in a cozy Capitol home.

**Jace Leighton's POV**

Everybody I love dies.

People always deny it, using that irritating 'it's simply a coincidence' excuse. It isn't. My mother had me at a young age and a year later she was reaped. I didn't know her well, but I _loved _her and she _died. _

Three years ago my best friend was reaped. He made it into the final eight when he was cornered by the Careers.

The boy from Four cut out his throat so he could not scream. The girl from One tore off his legs. The boy from Two finished him, as he was taking his last breaths, by stabbing him right in the eye.

I will avenge them if it kills me.

Our escort goes on in an extremely high-pitched voice for a man. It sounds like he permanently swallowed helium.

"Let us choose our female tribute first!" he squeaks. There are bits and pieces of laughter around me but most people are too afraid to even utter a giggle. The girls are dead silent for obvious reasons.

A single slip rests in our escort's palm.

"Solstice Hart!"

Solstice… Oh, isn't that the Avox? Most people in this district are skeptical of her because Avoxes are deemed untrustworthy but the few times I have seen her she just looks sad.

The girl is fourteen and emerges as people clear the aisle for her. Her skin is extremely pale, in a sickly shade, and there are clear tears in her eyes.

"What's your age, dear?" the escort asks, grinning. Solstice shakes her head violently, glancing longingly towards the Justice Building.

"She can't talk!" a loud male voice booms from the seventeen-year-old section, explaining the odd gestures. Our escort curiously glances at Solstice but shrugs it off.

"Now onto our male tribute," helium-man says, fishing a grimy hand into the bowl and pulling out a slip.

"Jace Leighton!"

**District Six**

**Kaya Copper's POV**

I am in my bedroom, standing in front of my mirror. I'm wearing a dark green dress with thick straps on my shoulders and falls in a thin skirt to my knees. My dark hair is smoothed down.

My eyes are sweet today. Most of the time, when I look in the mirror, I see a monster.

Because a monster lives inside me.

I have a disease. I don't know what it's officially called but it… turns me mean sometimes. It makes me become a different Kaya, one that I don't like one bit.

Some people call me _monster_. It is whispered around me like a tornado. Or a hurricane that I'm standing in the eye of.

_Monster._

How should I feel?

I feel guilty.

**Viktor Blake's POV**

When I was younger, my parents were trapped in a burning house. I escaped out the window, thinking that my parents were waiting for me.

They weren't.

That single flame was accidental and small but it ruined my life.

As I get my finger poked, I wish that I could steal the small instrument they use to draw the blood and murder myself with it. I have this pain in my chest that is always there. I can't sleep because of it. I can't think straight because of it.

It is an ache that I can't fight.

I sit alone during the entire speech. The woman is young, maybe twenty or so. She has perfect silvery skin and bright pink cotton-candy hair. Her eyes are unbelievably wide, full of sparkles.

She picks a slip from the very top of the bowl. "Kaya Copper!"

I very faintly remember an awkward conversation with Kaya once. She is rather pretty, but in a unique way. She's just… interesting to look at, I suppose you could say. Her eyes are narrow and beautifully intense; her skin is a flawless shade of porcelain.

The Peacekeepers try to hold the thrashing Kaya. That's strange. When I talked to her, she was bubbly and happy.

Her face falls when she meets the escort and tears leak down her face.

What on earth…?

Our escort ignores the whimpering Kaya and she picks another slip from the very bottom of the boy's bowl.

"Johnny Kale!"

Well, frankly, I am sick of this life. I think I will be leaving very soon. They won't be needing me anymore. I stand up and scream, "I volunteer!"

**District Seven**

**Skandar Dagwood's POV**

When I wake up, I don't even bother to open my eyes.

I am blind. Completely and utterly blind. When I was fifteen, I was in the woods looking for my father. He is deaf in one ear and I suppose he could not hear me coming up behind him. So he did the natural self-defense.

I have been told my eyes make people uncomfortable. I remember them as a rich dark brown, contrasting with my pale skin. Perhaps my skin has turned tan over the years. I don't know…

"Skandar?" my mother shouts, near my room. "Please don't try to get out of bed by yourself!"

Laughter erupts from the back of my throat. "I won't, Mom!" Being blind does not make me as helpless as most people think. My hearing is actually extremely sharp and I know my way around my house very well.

Tiny, nimble footsteps enter my line of hearing. "Fairlee?"

"Yes."

Fairlee is my younger sister of nine years old. I collect all of my memories of her and hope that she still looks the same.

"Mom wants me to show you where your Reaping clothes are." Fairlee says, tugging my hand. I rise to my feet, surely towering over my sister. "Just follow me, all right?" she says excitedly, slowly walking out of the room and bending around the corner.

After stepping into one of our spare rooms, soft fabrics land on my arm. "Here," Fairlee says, folding them out cleanly. "What do they look like?" I ask, rubbing my thumb on the cottony clothing. "Black pants, a white button-up shirt, and some suspenders." Fairlee replies, letting go of my hand and stepping outside. "Let me know when you're done." She says as she closes the door.

I can remove my clothing and dress without much trouble. Once I have gotten everything on, I call Fairlee back in.

"Oh, you look wonderful!" she giggles, clapping before grabbing my wrist.

"I wish the Reaping wasn't so early here." I say as my mother locks up the house. I can tell what she is doing by the clicks and clacks of keys; the turning gears on the door. It makes me wish that I could see, just so I could study mechanical engineering or something of the sort. Anything but lie back as the poor blind child.

**Luciana Sage's POV**

I quickly ruffle the end of my dark brown dress. I want to look decent at my first Reaping; not ugly and dirty like the people from poorer parts of District Seven.

"Oh, Luci, you are _so _cute!" Mother squeals. My nostrils flare and I glare up at my mother, forcing her to look at my large blue eyes. "_Shut up_. I'm not cute! And stop calling me Luci!" I hiss at her with the voice of a snake.

My brother, Lukas, has enough sense to look a bit frightened when I hiss and tiptoe away a few inches or so.

My mother turns to my father, smiling as if I just won an award. "Isn't it _adorable _when she does that?"

I screech in a long, dragging tone for about ten seconds before grabbing my brother's hand and stomping away from those imbeciles. What have I done to deserve to be _cute_? I am not cute. I believe the proper word is _pretty_, god damnit!

"I hate when they do that," I snarl. Lukas nods his head, following me to the twelve-year-old section. "You aren't cute, Luciana, you're _pretty_," he says. I smile at him out of gratitude.

At least someone can see it.

Our escort is rather… terrifying. She is completely blood-red from head to toe, complete with horrifying bloodshot eyes.

"I will now pick our lucky lady," the woman says, smiling gracefully at the audience. Fear paralyzes my body. "Relax…" Lukas whispers to me.

"Luciana Sage!"

What?

This is not possible. I do not know how I'm walking to the escort as my legs are numb. My legs are shaking when the numbness wears off.

I have been reaped.

A blind boy is also reaped and we shake hands.

I have been reaped.

I'm going to die.

I have been reaped.

**District Eight**

**Mellow Monack's POV**

My eyes open and it takes a moment to adjust to the dark, as there is no sunlight streaming in for some strange reason. It is also rather cold, unlike my warm bed that I always find comfort in the night before the Reaping. Where am I?

I take a tentative step upwards only to slip on something and tumble down. I attempt to rise by pulling myself up but my hands are covered in something slippery. What the…

My green eyes narrow in concentration. With a sudden realization, I let out a small shriek and leap backwards, banging my head on the wall behind me.

Blood.

Taking a look at my entire body and closely at my hands, I nibble on my lower lip. There is so much here that I don't understand… I make a rash decision and dash to the lightest area of the room.

I think that I know this place. It is an abandoned little shop near my home but I have never been very familiar with it. I run out the nearest door only to be partially blinded by the morning light. I am dressed in a thick black coat that doesn't seem to keep my shoulders from violently shaking.

_You know what happened, Mellow._

My head throbs.

This voice inside my head… invades my private thoughts and _ruins _me.

_No I don't!_

_That's a lie._

_I really don't._

_If you think hard enough, you'll remember._

"Mellow! We were worried sick!" my younger sister, Lane, smiles up at me and wraps her skinny arms around my waist. I do not object, but keep my blood-soaked hands inside my pockets.

"Where were you?" Dad comes around the corner with a stern look on his face.

_Tell them the truth._

_I don't know what you're talking about._

_Yes you do. Now tell them._

"I lost track of time and had to sleep at Reeka's house," I lie breathlessly.

My father's face breaks out into a laugh. "Oh, you crazy children. Now, go get ready for the Reaping, alright?" I nod in response and scurry up to my room.

I look at my hands in the mirror. They are not harmed in any way, so this must be someone else's blood.

But who's?

_You know._

_No, I don't._

_People that are close to you always go missing, and you wind up with blood on yourself. Doesn't that seem a bit coincidental?_

**Wyatt James' POV**

"I'm scared," my twelve-year-old sister, Anya, whispers to me.

I hesitate before replying to sooth her fear. She and her twin, Alexis, are now both of Reaping age. How will my family respond if one of them are reaped? I will lose my mind. After their deaths, I would be crushed inside.

I pat her on the head, slightly messing up her carefully-done smooth black hair. She looks a bit irritated but the fears remains bold in her eyes.

"Good luck," Mom says to each of us, kissing our cheeks. I would typically wipe the saliva off of my cheek but today it is essential if I don't want to break down.

"What's that?" Alexis says shrilly, pointing a finger at the sharp stick they use to prick our fingers. "It isn't a weapon, just a… stick." I explain, hastily pushing them into line.

After our few drops of blood splatter on the floor, I tell my sisters something very important to their stress levels. "Remember, your names are only in there once. You won't be picked. And my name is only in there four times. I won't be picked either."

I sit in a seat at the very edge of the seating panel. I immediately wish that I had picked a more central seat because I have basically no support over here.

The speech of our history is long and undeniably boring. Everyone already knows the story very well.

"Now is the time to pick a female to represent District Eight!" our escort screams. All she does is scream; I have never heard her talk quietly or even normally. She plucks a slip near the bottom of the bowl, pushed to the side. "Mellow Monack!"

A beautiful girl stands from the fifteen-year-olds, wobbly on her thin legs. I have seen her around and perhaps talked to her a few times; she is unbelievably nice. Mellow's red hair stands out in the crowd and her pale skin glows lightly from the sun. She is very possibly the prettiest girl I have ever seen.

"Time for the male!" our escort screeches, reaching into the bowl once again. I swallow a dry lump in my throat, clenching my fists together.

"Wyatt James!"

I fall forward and the world turns black.

**District Nine**

**Lace Chandler's POV**

I wonder what my voice sounds like. Perhaps it is a soft, melodious sound; sweet and timid. Or maybe my voice is deep and strong, unlike how I act. I often wonder how my voice sounds but I suppose it's hopeless because I will _never _know.

When I was born, I was a fairly healthy child except for one problem that the doctors found: my vocal cords were messed up. They were damaged and did not work properly. Because of that, I am unable to speak. I do think that it has gotten at least a little bit better throughout my fifteen years of life, as I can now make small humming noises or whimper. Little things.

"Hello, Lace," my mother's voice fills my room. I smile at her widely, which is what I mostly do to show people I am listening. "Do you want me to do your hair?" I nod eagerly.

My mother runs a delicate brush through my white-blonde hair. I have been homeschooled all my life by my mother because she feared that I would be socially isolated if I was surrounded by noisy people when I'm silent.

"Oh, Lace, your hair is so beautiful," Mother sighs, tightly morphing the mop of blonde into a bun. "It will look lovely with your dress. I'll have Satin go get your Reaping outfit." Satin is one of my two siblings, the other being my nineteen-year-old sister, Plaid. Satin is seventeen and most definitely the sibling that I am closest to.

"Satin, will you get Lace's dress? It's in my room." Mother shouts down the hall. Swift, stomping footsteps dash into my mother's room and then near the door to my room. My brother appears, grinning and holding a white dress. "Here, Mom. Good morning, Lace." With that, he runs out of the room, apparently having more important things to do. My mother stands, hesitating by the door. "Come out when you're done, Lace, and we'll get moving." I nod.

I pull on the dress with no trouble. I have never tried it on before, never even seen it. I suppose that my mother wants it to be a surprise for me. When I glance at my reflection in the mirror, I smile.

The dress is snow-white and has sleeves that puff out into a ball shape. The top part of the dress is a plain white and leads to a puffed-out skirt that falls to my knees. It gives me the appearance that I am younger than I actually am, maybe fourteen or even thirteen. It is extremely simple and that is the reason I love it. I tug on some pale pink flats and walk out my door.

"You look beautiful, Lace," Satin says, taking my hand and squeezing it for support. I simply smile, like always.

Plaid nods her head in acknowledgement of me and my father comes rushing in. Plaid licks her red lips; she is dressed well for this occasion even though she isn't of Reaping age anymore. "Let's go."

**Arlin Tainte's POV**

I woke up late.

I always wake up late but today is the Reaping, which I am supposed to care a whole lot about. I don't. I see them, the other people in this district, whispering to each other about how scared they are and how _awful_ it is. Then they turn right around to their safe, warm houses and watch it through their cold glares.

I usually have nightmares and last night was no exception. It reminded me of those horrible people I am forced to call my parents. They're dead now, killed by me.

I was nothing but a subject, an experiment. They never said they loved me. They never talked to me at all. All that they did was do _tests_ on me. I know what they were studying; they wanted to see what forms of abuse ruined the mind the most. One night, in my little cage, I kept a plastic fork from a meal and sharpened it all throughout the night. At about three in the morning I used it to break out of my cage and I hunted my parents down; stabbing them in the neck numerous times once I found them.

Now, I am alone.

Memories. They flood my mind, tumbling over one another again and again. They are all around me now and I can't escape. I can't breathe…

I can't stand it. I take one of the few knives I keep hidden in my drawer and make a clean, quick cut on my wrist. Blood seeps out, mixing and running over the other cuts along my arm.

The pain helps me.

I flail a hand out of my shabby window. The air is humid and annoyingly hot, to my dismay. It is far too hot out there to wear a shirt… I throw on some black pants and thinly lined black boots. When I see myself in the mirror, my cuts are visible. Oh, I don't even care anymore! We are all going to die in the end so what does it matter?

My house is near the square and it only takes around four minutes to walk there. People stare at me through widened eyes and I hate it. I do not want them looking at me. It makes me want to tear out their throats in the most painless way possible just so they will stop staring.

I avoid everybody else, as the loner in the corner of the seating panel. Most people ignore me, though some do stare.

Our escort gets straight to the actual Reapingpart of the day, announcing loudly that he is now choosing the boy. The tone radiating off everyone around me is silent and stony, unlike how everybody is always bustling.

"Arlin Tainte!"

Oh. I have been reaped. I am going to die now.

I walk up to the escort without any hesitation. I don't really mind at all that I'm going to die; there isn't really much left for me in the world.

The strange-looking man reaches his hand into a different bowl, which is the one for females. He comes out with a single slip, the ghost of a grin playing on his lips. "Lace Chandler!"

A girl stands from the large cluster of fifteen-year-olds. I don't believe I have ever seen her or even talked to her. She has stunning light blonde hair that lies in a crisp bun and her skin is rather pale, practically porcelain. Her eyes are a brilliant turquoise color and wide with fear, shining by tears.

"Shake hands, you two," our escort orders. I turn to her and hold out my hand. Lace does not even glance at my cuts, just stares at me, a tear slipping down her cheek as she lightly squeezes my hand.

She intrigues me.

**District Ten**

**Mackenzie "Mack" Taner's POV**

The image plays in my head over and over at my will. I cannot stop watching this fairytale, what could be but is not. So I play it over once more.

"_How are you today, Mack?"_

"_Good."_

"_That's great. You know, I'm so glad to have you as my son."_

"_I'm so happy you're my dad."_

_Ugh_. It is so… stupid. I don't like it much anymore. I swat it away and it leaves my mind.

My father is dead as a doornail, slain by some animal, most likely. When I was fourteen, he went off hunting into the woods and did not come back. I was worried, for rather _obvious _reasons, and went into the forest in search of him. I didn't find him, but a large pool of blood that was far too much for simply a cut… A low growling noise sounded behind me and I came face to face with a bear, which was surprising because I thought that there weren't any bears for miles around District Ten. I attempted to run away and the bear slashed at my leg. I held a gun that I had stolen from my father's room and raised it at the animal, only to receive blinding pain in my ear. I had shot myself by some idiotic mistake, apparently. I was positive that it was the end for me and I closed my eyes, preparing for death. Another shot sounded and I opened my eyes to see a girl I am now familiar with, Jordan Smith, breathing heavily and holding a gun with shaking hands. She saw my face and was overly shocked that it was me and fell off her horse that she had ridden here, landing squarely on her ankle and making a sickly _crack._

Now, of course, Jordan's ankle is healed well but at least twice or thrice each year she seems to manage to break it again.

She is one of my greatest friends, however reckless she is with her bones.

**Jordan Smith's POV**

"Where should we sit?" my friend's silky voice disturbs my thoughts and I prop my head up. Pointing to four steady-looking free seats, we begin to walk to them.

I bite the inside of my cheek viciously. I would grab onto something but there is not really anything for me to hold onto, reducing me to biting.

"Our escort laughs like a car horn," Jane whispers to me, holding back laughter. I don't laugh, or even show signs of happiness. I hope you know well that right now I am scared as _hell_. Mostly everyone is right now; the air is tense and uninviting.

The escort does laugh strangely, however. She looks like a run-down clown, with bright red hair and her face painted white with blue stars underneath her enlarged eyes. She is wearing a yellow, red-dotted jumpsuit and oversized red rubbery shoes with white laces.

"Now we will pick our lovely lady!" clown-woman squeals with delight, grabbing the first slip on top of the pile.

My heart lurches down and all is quiet…

"Jordan Smith!"

I am positive that my heart has left my chest and dropped down to my feet.

I walk with a stony stature, hardly being able to keep myself from collapsing. I do all I can to ensure that my legs don't wobble in a sign of weakness as I am on camera now. I bite down hard on my lip and let out a small gasp when I feel blood leaking down my chin.

Clown-woman gives me a dimwitted smile, causing my hopes of an intelligent escort fall. She reaches into the Reaping ball once more and pulls out a new slip.

"Mackenzie Taner!"

Oh, God. I know Mackenzie, very well in fact. Now I am going to be fighting to the death with him. Haven't I already caused him far too much trouble? In the woods, that one day, I _know _that he thinks I saved him but in reality, he was the one that shot the bear. I was clumsy with my aim in those days and I did not mean to shoot at his ear! It's my fault that now he is walking towards me with half a left ear…

**District Eleven**

**Michante Hark's POV**

Honor.

For my mother, for my father, for my sister soon to wed Chayton, for my grandmother, most of all. For my _tribe._

All of this flashes before my eyes when my name is called by the snowy man standing as the escort for District Eleven. I stand, unable to be proven weak. I am strong, much stronger than anyone else standing here. All eyes darkened eyes are planted on me and only me as I walk to the white man.

He pats my back and I wince.

Honor…

**District Twelve**

**Ren Hanapon's POV**

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you! Happy birthday, dear Cricket… Happy birthday to you!" my now-nineteen-year-old brother, Cricket, blows out the single candle on his vanilla-flavored cake that I obviously did _not _use my irresistible boyish charms to coax the daughter my age into giving me for free… nope…

"Can I have some cake now?" I ask impatiently, tapping on my mother's shoulder.

"Ren, be patient. It's your brother's birthday."

I make a loud, groaning noise.

"Why are you being such a brat today?"

I am quick to retaliate. "I'm not being a brat!"

"Yes, you are. It's your brother's birthday! Can't you at least – ''

"Hey, don't blame me that _your_ birth certificate is an apology from the condom factory!" I shout, directed at my brother, before running out of the house.

"Ren! Get back here right this instant!"

"Who even _taught _him that?"

I can only imagine the guilty look lying on my brother's face…

Glancing up at the sky, I wonder what color it is right now. After so much dust from being down at the mines all day turned me colorblind, I can only see cloudy shades of grey. It's a rather light color at the moment, so I am guessing that the shade is a beautiful color.

I hear footsteps behind me.

"Why, look, it is time for the Reaping! See-ya-later-gotta-go-right-now-bye!" I say in one fast word before sprinting off.

"_Get back here!_"

"No thanks, I'm good!"

**Riveann "River" Booe's POV**

"Now we must pick the boy and girl to represent District Twelve!" the woman with a powdered wig sinks her hand into the female bowl. I bite on my lip intensely, caught up in the silence along with the rest of the girls in District Twelve.

"Riveann Booe!"

A stony silent expression sticks onto my face as I walk to the woman. I rub my bare arms obsessively, causing redness to spread up to my face.

The woman sends an odd smile my way before reaching into the boys' bowl. She pulls up a single slip and her breath catches before she reads the name aloud. "Ren Hanapon!"

A small thirteen-year-old-boy emerges from the crowd of thirteen-year-olds. A panicked boy standing with the ineligible people raises his hand high "I volunteer! I volunteer! I just turned nineteen today! Can't I still volunteer?" Peacekeepers keep him at the edge of the square through his rampage.

Once the boy starts nearing me, I can hear his irritated mutterings. He glances up at me with bright green eyes and I am taken aback. He's so young, so small….

Oh, God.

**I FINISHED!**

**Finally, right? It took me, like, eight days! BUT I HAVE FINALLY FINISHED!**

**So, again, apologies if your character didn't get a long POV. But this is… 29 pages long and about 8000 words 0.0 **

**Also apologies to LoveIsBlindness about not featuring her characters yet, but I swear I will do my very best to explain them during the Train Rides and Chariots!**

**Please review! **

**Tell me who you like… tell me who you dislike… all that good stuff!**

**~Choose your last words, this is the last time. 'Cause you and I, we were born to die~**

**Born to Die by Lana Del Rey**


	4. Train Rides

**AH! Train rides time!**

**So, I'm going to have five POVs, I think. Unless something goes all haywire. Bee tee dubs, I put the district above whoever's POV it is. So… yeah….**

**Also, I am introducing the District Two male in this chapter. Fun! And the District Eleven girl will be introduced next time 'round. AKA the Chariots.**

**This is usually the point where I start rambling, so I'd better start writing!**

**District Seven**

**Skandar Dagwood's POV**

I may not be able to see, but I can hear very clearly. I have heard that when you go blind, your hearing grows much stronger. So I suppose that I heard my name being called as a tribute about ten times louder than anyone else did.

I do not know what my district partner looks like or what age she is, but her name is Luciana Sage and her hand felt tiny and soft. So I am guessing that she is younger than me.

As the train's engine rumbles to life, I stumble a bit. How am I supposed to know my way around this? I need a guide…

"Hello?" I feel incredibly stupid talking to nobody in particular out loud, but I need to see if there is anyone that can show me around. I hear a small noise, like a shoe rubbing against carpet, and then a sigh. "Yes?"

Thank God, a _person._ "Who are you?"

Whoever the person is steps closer to me. "My name is Luciana. I am your district partner. Are you _blind_?" the voice is young and high-pitched. She is probably twelve, maybe thirteen.

"Yes. My name is Skandar. Can you lead me around the train a bit? Just so I can get used to it?" I ask, a tone of pleading in my voice. If this girl says no, then I am basically doomed for however long I'm stuck here… Luciana sighs before grabbing my hand. "Fine. It's quite small, anyhow." She says, starting to move.

"How old are you, anyways?" I ask, curiosity getting the best of me. "I'm twelve and apparently I'm going to remain twelve forever since I'm going to _die_," she hisses, her grip tightening. That's a bit strange. I remember from when I used to watch the Hunger Games, the twelve-year-olds were usually just scared of death and hadn't really accepted it well enough until they were lying on their deathbed. But this girl seems plenty aware that she's going to be the runt of the group and therefore at a disadvantage.

"What do you look like?" I question her. She makes a sharp turn. "Brown hair. Blue eyes. Okay, I'll start the tour now," Luciana snaps harshly. Well, that wasn't exactly an amazing description but it will have to do. I imagine Fairlee with brown hair and blue eyes and dub that as Luciana.

Luciana blows air out of her mouth, making a whistling sound. "Right _here_," she reaches my hand onto a smooth, cold surface, "Is the door to your room."

"Here, I'll show you around it," Luciana says, and I hear a knob twisting. I step inside after her, more uncertain. She leads me around in a circle, pointing our subtle things here and there. It really doesn't do much for the mental image I'm trying to create, but at least the girl is _trying _to be helpful.

"Thanks, Luciana. I think that that's enough touring for the moment," I say brightly, smiling with all of my teeth. She sighs. "Alright. I suppose I'll just go to my room now," she closes the door slowly and I can hear the nimble tappings that are her footsteps.

She reminds me of Fairlee, in a way. Most likely because they are both young, and because the image I have made of Luciana is basically Fairlee with different eyes.

Ah, well.

**District Nine**

**Lace Chandler's POV**

"So, what can you two do?" my mentor says harshly, glancing at the clock on the wall. He won the Eighty-Sixth Hunger Games, I think, at age fifteen. His name is Colbert and he hacked away at the girl from District Four's head to be crowned Victor. The girl was his only kill, as he got through the majority of the Games through sponsor gifts.

"I guess that I'm kind of good at handling pain. If that even counts." Arlin, my district partner, says wearily. He seems quiet, like me, which I suppose is nice. He has angry cuts along his arms that I wonder about but obviously won't say anything about because I _can't talk. _Oh my God, I am going to be such a _joke _in these Games! I can't even scream! Some people think I can, but screaming requires intense vibrations of vocal cords and mine can't handle that kind of pressure. If I even get any allies, they wouldn't even be able to tell if I was being killed.

"Lace." I glance up at Colbert, who is glaring at me with dagger-like narrowed eyes. I don't utter a word, of course, and his eyes turn from narrowed into snakelike slits. "Why aren't you answering?"

I have never had to answer this question. Usually my mother or siblings are beside me and are there to explain that I am unable to speak. I am alright at miming things, I suppose, but how will I get it across to this man that I can't talk?

I place a cold hand on my throat and shake my head violently. Colbert now looks confused, his eyebrows twisting around. "Can't you speak?" he asks. I shake my head.

"Oh, God, you're _useless_!" Colbert screeches, stomping out of the room. I bite on my lip, glancing downwards once again.

Footsteps tap away from me. Most likely Arlin, fleeing from his pathetic district partner. But then the taps turn around to face me once more and I stare up in surprise as a notepad and pen land squarely in front of my face. I see Arlin taking a seat directly across from me.

"So you can't talk?" he asks curiously, raising a dark eyebrow. I shake my head. "Why not?" Thankfully, my handwriting is rather neat and easy to read.

_My vocal cords are weak. _I write before sliding the notepad over to Arlin. He takes a moment to read it before sliding it back.

"Oh," Arlin processes this quickly, seeming to run it through his mind twice before replying. "Well, don't listen to that old bastard. He doesn't know much about survival, seeing as he lived on sponsors." With this, Arlin pops a thin slice of apple into his mouth. For the first time, I notice that there are bowls of fruit and snacks _covering _this table. Normally, I would stuff myself, but my stomach protests at the very thought of food. I agree with it. If I eat anything, I might throw up.

I smile weakly at him in response, a close, tight-lipped smile. I don't really like smiling with my teeth, as it feels unnatural. But everything feels unnatural here…

**District Two**

**Stone Walcott's POV**

My district partner is a skinny-boned twelve-year-old. I was skeptical of her when I first stepped foot on this train, but we've bonded well since then. She states that she was born to kill. I tell her that I was, too.

When I was five years old, my father tried to kill me. He got irritated at me and slashed at the skin on my face several times. My face has scars but the inside is longing for blood… So I volunteered.

"Howl, the recaps are about to come on!" I shout down the narrow hallway. Howl leaps out of her room, her dark hair swishing behind her like a cape. She clings onto the smaller couch and settles in it, smirking cockily. I take a seat beside her and watch as the screen flickers to life.

District One starts, as always. A pretty fifteen-year-old volunteers with the name of Ayame Wolfe, staring around with stunning eyes. I recognize her from family interviews before. She has had siblings in the Games before, hasn't she? She looks like she could rip someone's throat out if she wanted to, but with sure hesitation. Hm… the male's name is Baron. He is only fourteen and I think that he has raised his hand to volunteer more than once. They look rather threatening as they strangle each other's hands. Howl interrupts my thoughts. "Ayame had a brother, I think, that _my _brother killed…" she says, laughing eerily. Oh, this will be fun.

The tributes from District Three are strange. There is an angry boy named Jax that rolls his eyes at every word that the escort utters. Then there is a rather fascinating girl named Amanda Leigh, who doesn't seem to be fully sane. She smiles around dreamily at everything, looking like she needs a definite trip to the loony bin.

District Four has a bald girl that weakly stands before a frantic sister volunteers. The girl's name is Isabella Rue and she seems relieved that her sister won't be competing. The boy, Max, seems unfazed by everything that is happening. Rather odd, the pair. But they will be with me in the Career alliance and I will have to put up with them… for _now…_

As soon as I see the female from District Five, I gasp loudly. Her name is Solstice Hart and she's rather tall, but her limbs don't seem to be very supportive. She has curly reddish-brown hair that frames her oval-shaped face and wide dark eyes. She has a rosy tint to her cheeks and she seems horrified by the very thought of the Games. Somebody shouts that she can't speak. A smile presses onto my face.

"She's mine, Howl. Okay? That girl, Solstice, is _my _kill." I say in a commanding tone. Howl nods, taking in the sight of the fragile girl.

Nothing would make me happier than watching the blood spill from Solstice's body…

District Six has a bipolar girl with a wicked expression on her face by the name of Kara or something of the sort. Once she is on the stage, however, she bursts into sobs. "Idiot," Howl grumbles under her breath. I have to agree. The male is a volunteer and his name is Viktor. It would be hilarious if he actually won, because his name is Viktor and you are called a Victor after you win.

A small twelve-year-old girl named Luciana Sage is reaped in District Seven. She is pretty adorable, which will probably earn her sponsors. Howl's eyes rage when they see the girl and she abruptly jumps up. "She's my kill!" Howl screams. "Alright," I shrug, letting her have her fun. I am not sure how easily Howl will be able to overpower Luciana, however, as they seem to be around the same height and weight. But I haven't seen Howl in action yet, so I suppose I shouldn't doubt her. The boy is even _more _shocking. His eyes are closed and other boys lead him down to the escort so I immediately piece together that he is blind.

Before I have time to register this, District Eight flashes on. An unstable-looking girl named Mellow shakily rises, walking to the escort slowly. She has bright hair that draws sunlight in and I can't help but marvel at how it reflects. A boy whose name I didn't catch is reaped and he _faints_. Howl and I laugh our asses off at the pathetic demeanor of this guy.

District Nine comes up. A pale-skinned boy with a flop of black hair and scars along his arms by the name of Arlin is reaped and seems untouched by this. His stony expression softens once he sees the female, whose name is Lace. Lace has tears brimming at the edges of her blue-green eyes and has lovely white-blonde hair that lies in a neat bun.

In District Ten, a weak-looking girl named Jordan is reaped and blood dribbles down her chin as she steps up to the stage. Mackenzie, the male, seems to be a tough guy. Jordan's eyes widen at the sight of him and she quickly glances away. Hm. I think that there is something going on between those two…

"Food?" our escort asks as two Avoxes come in with trays. Howl and I dig in as District Eleven comes on. We realize our mistake immediately after we have all of our food on our plates and I mentally curse at myself for not paying better attention.

In order to make up for our slip-up, we pay extra attention to District Twelve. A girl named Riveann is reaped and seems to not care much about this. I suspect that it is an act, however, as I see Riveann anxiously nibbling on her lower lip. A thirteen-year-old named Ren Hanapon is also reaped and I can just imagine all of the mothers screaming for him as he looks very young. Ren looks annoyed at being reaped and a bit of a brat.

I'll kill them all.

**District Eight**

**Mellow Monack's POV**

I don't understand it, but I'm happy.

I think that I hurt somebody. I think that I hurt more than _one _somebody. Throughout my childhood, I have had that damned voice stuck inside my head. I have had moments where it got louder and louder until it thundered over me, leaving me helpless, and then I remember nothing. The next day I hear that someone has gone missing around the time of my blackout…

I can't hurt anybody else if I am dead.

_You think you're going to die?_

I clutch at my head, losing the sure stability I had mere minutes ago.

_Yes. I am going to die. I'll kill myself if I have to._

_I won't let you._

I fall to the ground, still grabbing at my forehead. It's throbbing with pain and it hits a new level of torture anytime it says something else.

_Leave me alone!_

_You know I won't._

_I want you to. _

_I won't._

I breathe in shallow breaths.

_You're killing me!_

I open my eyes wildly and see Wyatt stepping into my room gingerly. I want to scream in protest but my mouth won't work. It's controlling me. _Again_.

_You'll thank me later._

_I will never thank you. _

"Mellow? Are you alright?" Wyatt asks warily, furrowing his eyebrows. I want to tell him to leave. But I can't. I am incapable of it.

I am helpless. I am not in control of my body.

_Mellow. _

_Leave me alone._

Wyatt has come closer to me. He is about to say something.

_Kill._

I lunge at Wyatt. My nails dig into his face and I black out.

**Oh, I love these tributes! So much! Sorry that I only had four POVs, but I'm pretty sure that everyone was at least mentioned once.**

**So, what do you think of Stone? Who do you like the most so far? Please tell me! :D**

**Sorry about the suckish name for this chapter. But I have absolutely no good train-ride titles. Who does? Anyway.  
**

**If you're a good apple, go read The Kill by Rose Hunter and A Bloody Game by LoveIsBlindness!  
**

**Review!**

**Oh, and by the way, the songs at the end are just whatever I was listening to when I finished the chapter. So yeah.**

**~I think I'm drowning but I don't know where the air is, or which direction to go~**

**Disappear by Christina Li**


	5. Brighter Than the Sun

**Holla! I am back to write the Chariots! :D**

**Sorry if the costumes suck! I'm not very good at it, but I LOVE making the costumes! It's so much fun!**

**And thanks for all the reviews! SERIOUSLY! I feel so special! :3**

**So, this chapter is supposed to have five POVs also. And I really hope it ends up like that or else I'll have screwed up the timing for this chapter…**

**Willow, our dear District Eleven girl, will be introduced in this chapter!**

**Bee tee dubs, I finally got rid of the 'closed' thing in the summary! YAY!**

**I also put up a poll. Vote for your favorite four tributes!**

**Aaaand now writing time!**

**District One**

**Ayame Wolfe's POV**

I don't like being here. I feel alone here and cold here, and I don't like it. I hate it, actually. I hate it…

I never wanted to do this.

I never wanted to volunteer but I had to.

Baron, my district partner, hates me with a burning passion because Cliff volunteered before he had the chance to two years ago. Why does he even care? Cliff died on the second day, by the hands of his fellow Careers… That twelve-year-old District Two girl, Howl, has a brother that helped, even suggested, his murder. I would interrogate her about it, but that girl seems lethal…

"Ayame, your prep team awaits!" a squeal emits from my escort, rushing me out of my safe room and into the grimy arms of three people.

"Come with us, dear," a woman with a neon orange afro and dark brown skin says calmly, grabbing at my elbow. I flinch at her harsh touch but obey. Observing the other two, I see that this lady is the only woman on my prep team as the other two are spiky-haired men, most likely twins. They are exactly the same height with the same features; identical. Though one has blue hair and the other's is pink.

They lead me into a blinding white room, with lights covering the ceiling. I avert my eyes to the ground immediately until one of the men snap at me. "Let me see your eyes."

I glare at him, letting his fully see my wide eyes. I know what color they are, I've practically memorized every detail of myself.

"Jellie, Matissa, I think that we should wash her hair but keep it natural, clean her nails, and cleanse all of the dirt off her body, first of all." The man with the blue hair says, most likely addressing his fellow prep team members. I am guessing that his brother, the man with the pink hair, is Jellie and the woman with the afro is Matissa.

Wait, what dirt? I can assure you that there is _no _dirt on _my _body…

**District Twelve**

**Ren Hanapon's POV**

"We should put just a dash on black eye-shadow on his eyelids, shouldn't we, Drugh?" the woman of my two-person prep teams purrs. I don't really know what her name is but she resembles a cat greatly. She even has long, grey raking claws that leaves scratch marks on everything she touches.

What is eye-shadow? "What's eye-shadow?" I question the man, whose name is apparently Drugh. He is much more normal-looking than the woman, except for his platinum blonde hair-flip and pure white eyes.

"It's a kind of makeup," he replies, reaching for a pallet of brightly colored powders. "_Makeup_?" I screech, leaping out of my seat. "No way! You are not putting makeup on this beautiful little face of mine!" I motion at my face, gently tapping on my fantastic dimples.

Cat-Woman sighs. "Fine. Get him into costume."

I smile victoriously, sitting back down in my seat. Then I realize that I am going to be getting dressed and I stand up again.

"Here," Cat-Woman throws me a costume in a large dry-clean-esque plastic bag. I open the tight seal without much trouble and gaze at the outfit. It is pitch black, with a few sparkles here and there.

Cat-Woman and Drugh have to help me dress in the costume, as it is rather long. It is a full bodysuit, completely black and plain. It has sleeves that completely cover my arms and a small cape-like thing. There are little sparks here and there, I suppose to represent coal.

It's alright. Not bad, not amazing.

"Do you like it?" Drugh asks eagerly. I am about to respond when Cat-Woman clenches a hand over my mouth. "Never mind that! We don't have time to ask it, Drugh!" _It_?

"Here, little one, put on these shoes," Cat-Woman tosses a pair of dusty black shoes at me and I slide them on quickly. They are giving off a clear vibe that they are in a hurry, so I suppose that I must go and face the other tributes soon.

Cat-Woman pushes me to the door. "Go on, little thing, go, fulfill all of your wishes and dreams as the door opens for you into the fifth dimension!" she shrieks, shoving me out of the room and slamming the door behind her. Well, okay, then.

Most of the tributes are already here. The District One girl, Ayame, is sitting quietly in her chariot, looking a bit nervous for a Career. The terrifying District Two pair are here already, smirking and laughing at fellow tributes. They crack up once they see me and my face flushes instinctively. I turn my gaze to the Five pair. Solstice, the mute, is sitting in her seat whereas the male is leaning on the side of the striking chariot, apparently checking out the competition. The boy from Eight, Wyder or something, is in his chariot. I notice that he looks a bit sick, or just tired perhaps. Nine and Ten are both here, both sitting in their chariots. I can't help but notice the sweet way Arlin is gazing at his district partner, whom seems scared. My district partner, River, is twitching in her seat. I fall out of my daydream and dash over to her, quickly seating myself.

"Holla!" I greet River, smiling at her. She gives me a strange look before sighing. "What's wrong?" I ask. River gives me a skeptical look. "We're about to be put on display, like ragdolls! For the Hunger Games!" she says, motioning to all around us. I don't respond. I don't really mind being put on display, as long as it earns me a solid sponsor or two…

Two more tributes show up. I turn my head to see them. It is the Seven pair; the blind boy, Skandar, and the twelve-year-old, Luciana. I take a deep breath when I see Luciana… She's so pretty! She has the most beautiful, wide eyes I have ever seen and her hair is like a waterfall of beauty, that looks extremely soft. Her hair is an extremely light shade of grey, so I am guessing it's blonde or a very light brown.. I am sure that I have a stupid smile on my face but I don't even care!

"Ren." River hisses, snapping me out of my admiration state. "What?" I say, a blush sprouting onto my cheeks. "Don't stare. We aren't here to make friends."

**District Five**

**Jace Leighton's POV**

"Tributes, please get into your chariots. We will be launching in a matter of minutes." A voice overhead sounds, startling me slightly. I glance at my chariot, a bit _scared _of the thought of sitting next to Solstice and possibly bugging her. I feel tremendously bad for Solstice, and I usually try to avoid things that I don't want to be involved with.

Nonetheless, I shove my feelings into the ground and climb into the shiny, silver reflective chariot. It matches our outfits perfectly, as I am in a mirror-reflective grey suit and Solstice is dressed in a long-sleeved, high-neck dress made of the same sort of glassy fabric. It reflects every sliver of light that strikes us, making a dazzling view. It represents the light that comes from power, which is what District Five is for.

"Are you nervous?" I ask Solstice awkwardly, unable to bear the dying silence between us. She nods once before settling her gaze deeply on the starfish-clad District Four chariot in front of us.

"Tributes, we will now be launching!" the voice shouts and the lights flash off.

District One, Ayame Wolfe and Baron Kiol, have fantastic outfits. Ayame is in a tight, strapless golden dress that is extremely short. A thin line of clear jewels make a belt around her waist. She is wearing extremely high heels, most likely somewhere around five inches. Her hair seems to be in its natural curly state and she has her full lips painted golden to match her dress. Her eyelashes are obviously false and has silvery sparkles covering them. Baron is wearing a suit made of the same cloth as Ayame's luxurious dress; golden. A sterling silver undershirt lies beneath his top-part of the suit, and his shoes are also stunningly silver. His tie is jewel-encrusted and catches the light wonderfully. Baron's hair is spiked up into a diamond-like effect. Roses are immediately thrown at District One, as they are Careers and always loved.

District Two is equally as flashy, with the terrifying duo of Howl and Stone. Howl is wearing a one-shouldered Greek goddess-esque gown. It is a silvery grey, with a tight black band settled neatly across her shoulders to keep it from falling off. She is wearing astonishingly detailed sandals with a million small etchings in them that reach up to her ankles. They have small white wings coming from the sides. Howl's dark hair is in a high ponytail, with blunt bangs sliding across her forehead. She doesn't seem to have much makeup on except for purple-grey lipstick and a layer of powder on her face. Stone, on the other hand, is hardly dressed at all. He simply has a silvery cloth around his waist that ends near his knees, leaving next to nothing to imagination. The women in the crowd cry out and scream at him desperately, making me chuckle a little.

The District Three costumes are rather strange. They are a dress and a tuxedo made completely out of bright red and blue wires netted together. Amanda is head-butting her district partner repeatedly, messing up her neat ponytail a bit. She is wearing a wire-dress that has several wires braided together over her shoulder to keep the extremely heavy-looking dress from falling down. It reaches her knees, and she is wearing electric blue heels, to match the blue wires. Jax is wearing a suit made of the same wirey thing. The Capitol seems to be on the edge with these costumes, as they don't look pleased or displeased.

Isabella Rue and Max Leo of District Four receive an amazing response, as they are Careers and therefore well-loved. Isabella is wearing a rather revealing costume, with two pure white seashells covering her breasts and a tight seaweed skirt that almost reaches her knees. Her feet are bare, though her finger and toenails are painted a creamy white. Isabella's blonde hair is left to flow with the wind and she is wearing very minimal makeup. Max has his chest left bare, with seaweed shorts being his only clothing. Their chariot has live fish scattered and glued all around it; what on earth…?

The lights overhead are due to shine down on Solstice and me any moment now. I sneak one last glance at the girl standing next to me. She looks terrified out of her mind.

"Smile," I whisper before the audience's attention turns to us.

**District Three**

**Amanda Leigh's POV**

"In a dream, I was a werewolf!" I sing at the top of my lungs. I am on Panemian Idol! "My soul was filled with crystal light! Lavender ribbons of rain sang, ridding my heart of mortal fight!"

"Amanda, please _shut up_," Jax hisses at me. I crane my head towards him angrily. "You wanna fight, toaster stroodle? You wanna fight?"

Jax just sighs and turns his head away from me.

There's something wrong with him…

I hear cheering and decide to look at the pretty kangaroos in the big car. Kangaroos sent all the way from District Six. Hard to believe, I know.

Oh, the kangaroos are dressed as buses! It's so touching! I feel a single tear leak down my pale cheek and I sniff loudly. "Amanda, are you crying?" Jax questions me in a hushed tone. "Don't judge me, toaster stroodle! The kangaroos are so beautiful as buses!" I shriek, hiding my head. "You mean the District Six tributes?" Jax says. I don't respond.

I hear laughing coming from Jax. "Oh, God, they a_re _dressed as buses!"

I tilt my head towards him. "Laugh now, alligator! I'll just go and be a space unicorn!" I shout at him before leaping out of the chariot.

I hit the ground roughly and feel blood trickle down my chin. Oh, well, I'll worry about that later! I rush over to the people with leaves covering them. "Space unicorn, soaring through the stars! Delivering the rainbows all around the world!" I sing to them. The girl, who is small and incredibly adorable, huffs air out of her nose angrily. The boy looks confused and his eyes are glazed over. I poke him in the left eye. "Your eyes are weird-looking!" I squeal, laughing. "Don't do that!" the girl shrieks, swatting me in the face. "He's blind, you idiot!"

"Luciana, it's alright," the boy says awkwardly, blinking a few times. The girl, whose name is apparently Luciana, remains looking irritated.

I jump off of their chariot and jump onto the next, singing, "Space unicorn, shining in the night!"

**District Eleven**

**Willow Lockett's POV**

I watch with cold eyes as the insane girl from District Three, Amanda Leigh, launches herself up onto the District Eight chariot. Mellow Monack and Wyatt James are form District Eight, and I can see their uneasiness as Amanda starts animatedly chatting with them. They are in horrifyingly ugly outfits, mismatched rainbow-colors of cloth attached to them uselessly.

There is something strange going on with Mellow, I know. She has a wild look swimming around in her eyes, and there is obvious guilt that registers onto her face whenever she sees Wyatt. I also noted that Wyatt has a deep scratch on her cheek, and there are probably a lot more of cuts that are hidden by makeup.

I am just thirteen, but my maturity and intelligence is so beyond that. I have captured every detail of these other tributes and stored them in my mind to create a profile for everyone. When I was five years old, I learned that monsters don't live under your bed. They live inside your head.

I don't feel anything. Why should I? I am not like Arlin Tainte from District Nine, whose emotions are so numbed that he has to cut himself to feel anything at all. That shows me that he _wants _to feel things. He wants emotions to fall back on. I don't.

Why would I need emotions? That's right; I don't. Emotions just make people weaker than they actually are. They ruin them.

District Nine go out in clothing with grain covering them. It doesn't look quite right to me. I see and store that they are holding hands. _Oh, how adorable. _Not really. Love is unnecessary. Love drags you down and twists your insides into knots.

My mother has always wanted me to love her, but I don't. I can't. I don't want to love her, anyways. She's a stupid woman that let her husband run away.

District Ten are dressed in cow skin. The Capitol audience seems to find this utterly hilarious, and no cheers are given.

"Hello!" an annoying voice says next to me. I turn, partially startled, but narrow my eyes at the girl. Amanda. "Get away from me," I spit out, slapping her cheek. She looks saddened and runs off to the District Twelve chariot.

"My tribe wouldn't be pleased with you." I turn to see that it is my district partner, Michante Hark, speaking to me. I don't say a word, just stare straight ahead. "You have an evil aura around you – '' Michante continues, but I interrupt him. "Shut up. You don't know anything about me." I hiss at him, making sure that my eyes are cold.

"You are a demon inside a little girl." Michante snaps before the spotlight shines on us.

**Wow. I had huge writers block halfway through this, so sorry if it gets boring after Ren's POV.**

**So, how do you guys like Willow? **

**Did I already mention that I have a poll up now? Well, I do. So go vote on it!**

**Oh, by the way, I used two songs in this: Space Unicorn by Parry Gripp and Werewolf by CocoRosie. I love those songs! And the title came from the wonderful song We Are Young by Fun!  
**

**Review!**

**~Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day. All the world is waiting for the sun~**

**Rain by Breaking Benjamin **


	6. At First Glance

**Hey, y'all! What time is it? TRAINING TIME!**

**I am so excited! (laughs hysterically)**

**So, I am trying to make everyone have at least one POV before we get to the Games. Some might have two, I am not sure yet.**

**So, there are five POVs today. Yay!**

**Time for Training!**

**District Eight**

**Wyatt James' POV**

I have been awake for a while now, a few hours or so. I decided to get up early and help set up breakfast and such, and make a really nice meal for Mellow to eat. The other day, I scratched up my face. I don't really remember how at all, but when I came to my senses again Mellow was getting the mentor's help. She's such a nice girl!

So I have decided to set up a fantastic breakfast for her to thank her for helping me! There are mostly just ragged little cuts here and there across my face but there is one long scratch on my cheek.

Strangely enough, Mellow has been trying to avoid me. I am not sure why.

"Mellow!" I shout happily, running to embrace her when I see her face. She flinches and steps away from my touch. I decide that maybe she doesn't like being hugged so I settle for nothing instead. Mellow eyes the neatly set table and careful meal.

"I made you breakfast!" I say, gesturing to the table. "I can see that," Mellow says quietly, taking a step towards the table. "Why?"

"To thank you," I explain. "You shouldn't be thanking me," Mellow groans, sitting down and poking her food. "You shouldn't be happy to see me. I don't want to hurt you, Wyatt."

"But _you _didn't hurt me," I remind her, laughing lightly. "I cut up my face on my own."

Mellow sighs as our mentors walk into the room. My mentor, Jenisse, is a rather fragile woman that is nearing forty-years-old. Mellow's mentor is a tough man named Cyrus.

"Training is today, you know," Cyrus hisses, glaring at us with the eyes of a predator. Neither Mellow nor I respond. "I want you two to stick together," Cyrus orders, biting into a piece of bread. I nod my head up and down in agreement but Mellow doesn't say anything at all. "Just avoid other tributes, alright? You two are not the most… _threatening_ pair." Jenisse adds, nibbling on her bottom lip. I immediately glance over at Mellow's small size of about five feet and two inches and my also small height. I only stand two inches taller than Mellow and we are both very thin.

After we finish our breakfast in silence, I see that we have about five minutes to get to Training. "Come on, Mellow," I say quietly, taking her cold hand. She twitches and separates her hand from mine quickly.

When the elevator doors open, we see that the tributes from Twelve and Nine are already there. A bit uneasily, we step into the elevator. It's sort of unsettling to be in such a small place with such deadly people.

"So," Ren, the thirteen-year-old from District Twelve, says, "How 'bout this lovely weather?"

Nobody says anything.

"Is it just me or is this elevator ride, like, super long?" Ren says questioningly, furrowing his eyebrows. River elbows him in the stomach and from then on he is silent.

I breathe a sigh of relief when the elevator doors open wide and the Training Centre is there. I decide to not touch Mellow at all, and just gesture to the instructor. She nods before we take seats away from everyone else.

"If I ruled the world – '' Amanda, the mental girl from District Three that attacked our chariot, screams before being interrupted by Howl Draconix. Howl narrows her eyes at Amanda and places her hands on her hips. "Shut up already." She snaps before returning to the Career-cluster.

**District Four**

**Max Leo's POV**

I don't listen to the instructor at all, just glance around violently. I want to know who I can and who I cannot kill. I have two people in my mind that I can't get out of, no matter how I claw at it: Lace from District Nine and Ren from District Twelve.

I spy Lace sitting next to Arlin closely near the right side of the room. It is pretty easy to tell when it's her, because she and Willow have the lightest hair out of everyone. Her eyes are wide and she is obviously scared. I can imagine bashing her head against hard ground repeatedly until the light fades from her turquoise eyes.

Then there is the weak, petty little boy from Twelve. Ren Hanapon. He is so weak and _useless _that he has to rely on entertaining the other tributes; I have heard him and his stupid jokes many times. I could just imagine snapping his thin neck in half and that would be the end of it.

What is wrong with me?

"Uh, Leo, are you coming?" Bella whispers to me. I spring up instantly and dash over to where the other Careers stand, glaring at us. I huddle next to Ayame, and leave a space open for Bella to join.

"First things first," Howl growls, catching everyone's attention. "Stone is going to be the leader."

"Why?" Bella hisses, obviously angered by this. I almost groan but catch myself, not wanting to make anybody mad. Bella has anger-management issues that are rather obvious after talking to her a few times. Howl's nostrils flare at this comment, and she is about to make a nasty retaliation when Stone speaks.

"Now, now, we all know that it is everybody's choice on who is the leader of this alliance. We _do _have six people in this, anyway. So how about we have a vote?" there is a calming, confident tone in Stone's silky voice that causes everyone's head to nod up and down in agreement. I see Stone flick his tongue out at Bella, and contain my laughter as Bella snorts at this.

Stone turns to Ayame. "Ayame, who do you vote as the leader?"

Ayame purses her lips for a moment. She glances around nervously, blatantly bothered by this alliance somehow. "I choose… Stone as the leader."

Stone smiles at her, pinching one of her cheeks merrily before turning to Baron.

"I want to lead this group myself," Baron snaps, glaring at Stone. Stone nods, storing this information in his mind, and doesn't bother to ask Howl for her opinion, as she already declared that Stone be the leader. "I vote for myself also, simply to make sure that we have a well-rounded, _stable _leader," Stone says, his gaze drifting to Amanda a bit. The girl is rolling around in the paint in the camouflage station.

Stone grins widely at Bella with a look that I do not like one bit. "Isabella, who do vote for?"

Bella's jaw tightens at the usage of her full name, but doesn't acknowledge it loudly. "Myself," she states. Stone nods once before turning to me. "Max – ''

"Stone already won, so there is not really any point in having him vote," Howl says harshly.

Stone nods. "Alright then. First line of order, Howl and I have already reserved two tributes for ourselves," he says, glancing at Howl, "I want the mute District Five chick, Solstice."

No killing Solstice. Got it. "And I get Luciana Sage," Howl says before bursting into a maniacal laugh. Luciana is the twelve-year-old from District Seven, whose bones are so skinny I could crush them with my thumb.

"I want Ren and Lace," I speak up before I can stop myself. Howl and Stone nod at this.

I smile. I have reserved my kills, officially. They are mine and only mine…

**District Six**

**Kaya Copper's POV**

I am in the fire station, trying my best to at least get a single flame. My wood falls out of my hand before I even have the chance to start. I sigh, throwing the wood at the wall angrily.

"Don't worry about it," a voice says from beside me. I jump a little, slightly startled, but see that it is the boy from District Three, Jax. "Flames are stupid anyways."

I crack a smile. But my smile soon fades when I see the demonic child from District Two stealthily approaching the Seven pair at the snare station. Luciana is doing pretty well with her traps but Skandar keeps stumbling his fingers over the easiest knots.

Howl must know that almost every tribute's attention is focused on her actions right now. She is now standing directly behind Luciana.

"Hello," Howl greets her. I can almost see the goose bumps rising onto Luciana's skin at the eerie, soft sound of Howl's voice. "What do you want?" the girl snaps, trying to be tough though the fear in her voice is prominent. Howl keeps up the creepy smile painted onto her face. "I am going to kill you." Howl tells Luciana. "I already reserved you."

Luciana's eyes widen is a sort of disbelief. "You can't _reserve _a _person_…"

"Oh, yes, you can!" Howl cackles as she leaps away, leaving a horror-stricken Luciana and a confused blind boy.

The whole centre is quiet for a moment; most are probably scared by the fact that one twelve-year-old just announced that she was going to be murdering another twelve-year-old…

"Whoa," Amanda says, rainbow-colored from rolling around in paints, "Drama-bomb!"

"Oh, God," I murmur, holding my head in my hands.

I can feel the ache in my mind telling me that Other Kaya is going to take over. Other Kaya… the bad one…

"Kaya?"

I snap my head up. "What?"

"Are you alright?"

"Get away from me," I spit, glaring at Jax. "I don't need you here. I don't need anyone..." I don't, really. I just have me, myself, and I and that is enough for me.

**District Nine**

**Arlin Tainte's POV**

A deep voice overhead interrupts Lace and I's quiet progress in the plants station. Lace is utterly amazing at it, as she has remarkably good memory, and I am pretty good at it myself.

We are one of the first to arrive in the lunchroom, and stand in line behind Jace, the boy from District Five. I remember him from previous Hunger Games family interviews, though I am not sure exactly which tributes. Behind us is the small blonde girl from District Eleven, Willow. She has been hiding in the shadows this entire training, probably too afraid to come out. She is just thirteen years old, after all, and has been pretty keen on avoiding everyone.

I select hot chicken-noodle soup, a small salad, and some citrus. I make a last-minute decision to also get some water, as in a few days I will most likely be sitting on some foreign land, dehydrated.

"Let's sit over here," I say to Lace, pointing at a table near the door, so we can leave quickly. Lace nods and follows me to the table.

I watch with uncertain eyes as Willow walks straight to our table. Lace seems a bit unnerved by the girl's approach, also, and picks at her food with a plastic fork.

"Hello," Willow says, a blank stare on her face. Her voice sounds… emotionless. Her cheeks are hollow and her eyes are cold. I never noticed how _sharp_ her features are; from far-away she looks like any innocent child, but up-close she looks like a cruel sort of pretty.

"Hi?" I say in a questioning tone. An eerie smile splits across her face, her blank eyes drilling into me.

Okay then. I numbly sip on my soup, patiently waiting for Willow to leave. She is rather frightening to have around, as her facial expressions hardly change at all. She looks like a porcelain doll, lifeless and just… there.

Lace seems a bit bothered by the girl also. She gazes at Willow until it catches Willow's attention and she tilts her head to stare at Lace.

Most of the tributes have seated themselves by now. Mellow Monack and Wyatt James are sitting together, with Mellow looking pained and clutching at her head with shaking hands. Solstice is warily glancing at them, a table away from them, not eating at all. Perhaps she can't eat, either? I see Luciana guiding Skandar to a small table, with Ren Hanapon stalking them discreetly. Amanda Leigh is talking to the pair from Ten, and Jordan looks amused whereas Mackenzie seems irritated. The Careers all sit in a bunch, and I wince when Max Leo points directly at Lace before grinning demonically.

"Aren't you hungry?" Willow's voice interrupts my observations. The question seems to be for Lace, however. Lace shakes her head, sliding her food away.

"You can't speak," Willow states. It was probably meant to be a question at first, but all of the signs gradually pointed to the answer. "Why?"

"Her vocal cords are damaged," I explain. Willow stares at Lace's throat for a full minute, then laughs, a ringing sound that echoes slightly. She smiles again and my stomach turns. "Good-bye." She says before walking over to the boy from District Six, Viktor. Poor guy…

"That might be the creepiest thirteen-year-old I have ever met," I say honestly, stabbing a fork into my salad. Lace nods twice before nibbling on her lip.

"We should do climbing after," I tell her, smiling. "I think you'd be good at that."

**District Ten**

**Jordan Smith's POV**

"You two sure are cute for two ugly people!" Amanda shouts at Mack and me, before laughing hysterically. Did she just call me _ugly_? I cannot believe that this psycho is going to be going into the arena with me.

"Tributes, please leave the lunchroom and go back to your Training," a voice orders overhead. Mack and I don't ever bother to throw away our trays; we just leave them sitting at the table and make a mad dash for the Training Centre.

The pair from Nine, Five, and the Careers are already here. Lace is about to attempt climbing, it seems. Solstice is at the camouflage station and Jace is trying out a long, silver blade. The Careers are at the weights station, and at the moment Baron is throwing a rather small dumbbell across the station.

"Where should we go?" I whisper to Mack, my eyes roaming across the room. Mack purses his lips together before pointing at the archery station. "There, I suppose."

"Alright," I say, going over to the archery station. Thank God there are no other tributes here. I pick up a long, smooth bow with a thin string. It looks about right for me, now all that I need is a few arrows. They are everywhere, basically, so I just let a few random sizes go. Most of my shots are close to a bulls-eye, but not exactly there yet.

"Good, good," a deep voice says behind me. I turn around swiftly to see the male from District Eleven, Michante.

"What?" I say. He towers over me, and his dark eyes are rather terrifying. "You are doing well, my swan," Michante says. I think he is complimenting me. In a really strange way, but it's still a compliment.

"Um, thank you…" I mumble, turning back around slowly and not making a move until I can hear Michante's quiet footsteps walking away from me.

"What was that?" I whisper to Mack, a bit frightened. "I don't even know," Mack whispers back, glancing around.

"Tributes, training is over for the day. Please leave your station and report to the elevators. Thank you."

**Well, how did you all like the tributes slight interactions with each other? I have absolutely no idea who would be interesting to see talking to each other. So, if you want someone to interact with someone then just tell me who and I'll try to make it work…**

**By the way, have any of you ever seen/read Battle Royale? I watched it the other day and it was very good!**

**Oh, yes, the title is At First Glance because this is basically all of the tribute's first real glances at their competition.  
**

**So, go vote in the poll, if you haven't already.**

**~We're trapped inside the matrix, forced to play our hand. We're filled with so much hatred; the kids don't stand a chance~**

**The Kids by B.O.B.**


	7. Unchained

**Sup, everyone! Today is the second day of Training! **

**There will be five POVs in this chapter, yay! **

**Okay, so, I have a website/blog/thingy that has all of the tributes on it. It doesn't really have any major purpose, I just want you guys to be able to get an image of everyone. And some of the pictures are kinda fuzzy, so sorry about that. And sorry if I chose someone that isn't how you imagined your character. Anyhow, it's called 'shot in the dark hunger games. blog spot .com', except without any spaces. And I stole this idea from JabberjayHeart, so give him the credit. Anyway, go look at everyone, now!**

**Oh, and thank you all for the reviews! I have over fifty; that's amazing! **

**So, I must write now. Yay!**

**District Three**

**Jax Hood's POV**

"Hey, hey, you, you, I don't like your girlfriend!" Amanda shrieks in my right ear loudly. I grit my teeth as I try to get the ringing noise out of my eardrum.

"I don't _have _a girlfriend, you idiotic buffoon!" I snap at her, leaning back in my chair.

Amanda blinks twice. "You don't?" she starts laughing hysterically and pointing at me. "Haha, forever alone!"

"Somebody shoot me," I mutter under my breath, stomping over to the elevator. "Wait for me, duck-chi!" Amanda shouts, running to catch up with me. It is too late, though, and I quickly close the elevator door before she can get inside it.

"Will somebody please kill her? Please?" I plead to the others in the elevator. District Eleven and Seven are in here. The thirteen-year-old, Willow, is smiling at me with a doll-like face that sends a small chill through me. There is something wrong with her, I can tell… The blind boy squirms uncomfortably in his place and a flash of sympathy goes off inside me.

The elevator doors open and I see that most of the tributes haven't shown up yet. It is just Two, Four, Seven, Eleven, and me.

"Oh, I just can't wait to be king!" Oh, God. It's Amanda…

Everyone except Skandar watches her with amused looks on their faces. She spins in circles, almost whacking Skandar in the head several times, whilst shrieking out random things.

"Whipped cream pouring like waterfalls!" with this, Amanda takes a handful of whipped cream out of her pocket and attempts to launch it at Howl. Howl neatly dodges it, ducking her head out of the way. The whipped cream drops to the ground and seeps into the floor.

Where did she even _get _whipped cream?

My thoughts are interrupted by the irritating ding of the elevator. One, Six, and Twelve step into the room, warily aware of whatever just went on.

Ayame and Baron immediately shuffle over to the Career pack. Viktor stands alone in the corner of the room, and Kaya seems to be walking over to me… I have no idea what went on with her yesterday, but I am pretty sure she's bipolar or something. Ren tiptoes over to Skandar and Luciana, whom are talking quietly, and proceeds to stay just out of their sight line. I wonder if Luciana has noticed that they have a shadow yet?

Shadows _can _be good, though. As my gaze drifts to Willow, I comprehend that they can be awful too…

**District Two**

**Howl Draconix's POV**

Our instructor, Yalanda, explains to us the usual; no fighting, do not ignore survival skills. Same old things…

"What shall we do first?" Stone asks once we are allowed to train. "We should all make nice conversation with our… reserves, shouldn't we?" Max says.

"They are not really _reserves_ exactly, they are more like our play-toys. Our dolls." I say, smirking. I watch Luciana guiding Skandar to the knife station. How on earth will he ever learn how to handle a weapon if he is _blind_? That girl is stupid. I have noticed that she has a shadow. He is Max's toy; Ren Hanapon. Well, we will destroy Ren Hanapon, then I will destroy _you_, my dearest Luciana Sage…

"I'll talk to Solstice during lunch, I suppose. Max and Howl, how about you two go talk to Max's?" Stone says. Max nods and I go over to the fire station, where Lace and Arlin are working with flint.

"Hello, sweetheart," Max greets Lace, smiling at her. She glances up at him before giving a tiny wave.

Why did she wave? Can't she _speak_?

"You know, it's pretty rude to not say hello back to someone," I snap at her. She nods before looking at the ground.

"It's polite to make eye-contact with people," Max reminds her.

"Can you _go _now?" Arlin snaps at us. I practically forgot he was there; he has been so quiet. A smile grows onto my face when I spy the fading cuts along his arms.

"Hush-up, emo-boy," I taunt him, laughing a bit afterwards. He looks pretty pissed off, making me laugh even harder.

"Max, play with your _doll _a bit more," I order, throwing a glare out at Lace, whom stiffens. "I'll be around."

I briskly walk away from them, humming a little tune. Where should I go next? Hm, maybe I can go talk to Luciana more, frighten her a bit. I begin to walk over to where she sits when someone catches my eye.

A girl, who looks to be a mere inch taller than me, with white-blonde hair that falls near her small shoulders and narrow hazel eyes. She is in the back of the room, hiding in the shadows quite well, and watching Nine.

Something draws me to her. I approach her and she seems to see me but doesn't move a muscle.

"Who are you?" I ask. She sets her cold eyes on me before smiling. "My name is Willow Lockett. You are Howl Draconix of District Two, aren't you?" She addresses me.

I nod. "You're the girl from District Eleven, right?" She nods once.

"Why aren't you training?" I question her. "I'm observing." Willow states, glancing around the room once more with sly eyes.

"How's that working out for you?" I say, about to burst into laughter. You cannot win the Games with _observations_; it's simply impossible. "Rather well," Willow says, grinning, "Solstice Hart's tongue was cut out, that is why she doesn't eat very normally. Ren Hanapon has a _huge _crush on Luciana Sage, and that's why he has been following her around. Luciana Sage is violently afraid of _you_. Speaking of Luciana, I have noticed that she has the highest-pitched voice out of everyone, meaning that her screams will most likely be the shrillest. And – ''

I stop her there, a bit overwhelmed by the rich information. "We have a _lot _to talk about, Willow." I smile at her, with my demonic grin. She smiles back at me with her blank, sharp face.

**District Five**

**Solstice Hart's POV**

It is time for lunch.

And I'm terrified.

It is the second day of Training, and I don't even have anything _close _to allies.

Who would even want me as an ally?

Once settled in line, I survey the people around me. There is the girl from District One, Ayame, whispering with Isabella in front of me. When they notice that I am staring at them, they both glare at me until I look away. Seemingly satisfied, they return to their giggly whispering.

Behind me is Michante, the boy from District Eleven. He is rather odd, and constantly mutters darkly about his 'tribe'.

I select a creamy soup and water, as soup is basically all that I can eat. My diet is pretty strict as an Avox, and back in District Five it was always rather hard to find some sort of soupy substance for me to eat at all meals.

I make a quick decision to sit near but not next to Wyatt and Mellow again. I am not sure _why _them; maybe because they are the smallest pair, with neither of them standing at even five feet and five inches.

The two don't seem to notice the silent girl taking a seat next to their table. They talk in low voices to make sure they don't disturb anyone, unlike the Careers, whose chatter is so loud that I can hear them from all the way across the room.

"There she is," I can hear Baron saying. They are talking about someone… I wonder who.

"Where?" Stone's deep voice says curiously, pausing for a moment, "Oh, I see her. Sitting by Eight?"

My muscles immediately stiffen. _Me. _They are talking about me… Fear consumes me as I watch their voices drop to whispers and their fingers jut out at me…

I force myself to tear my eyes away from the Careers and focus on my food. I pour a tiny serving of the soup into my mouth and savor the welcoming flavor. I am about to take another sip when I hear heavy footsteps approaching me from behind and before I know it, someone's fingers are tapping on my shoulder.

Turning around, I come face-to-face with Stone Walcott.

Reflexively, I jump back a little to create space between us. Stone laughs at this, as if I am a small child running away from a monster.

"Just so you know," Stone says, "You're reserved." He laughs a bit at this before walking away. I have heard that Careers have been reserving people, but I didn't know _I _had been one of them. The thought just sends a shiver down my spine.

I'm screwed…

My fingers shake rather violently as I grasp the curved spoon to drink my soup. I am plenty aware that everyone's eyes are planted into me at the moment, and I hear harsh whispers gathering all around me. I can just feel my face paling, and my heartbeat quickening at the flowing attention that I don't necessarily want.

"Hey, are you alright?" a newfound voice says from behind me. I instantly turn to see who it is, only to be surprised by the caring face of Wyatt James, the boy from District Eight.

I forcedly nod, unknown of what he is like. He and his partner have been avoiding attention rather well these past days…

"You look a bit pale…" Wyatt says, his eyes glancing down at my snowy, shaking hands. He meets my eyes once more. "Do you want to come sit with Mellow and me?" I nod rapidly, scooping up my food, and jumping at the offer. I am overcome by happiness with this new, bright situation, and head over towards Mellow.

**District Seven**

**Luciana Sage's POV**

The voice announces that lunch is officially over, and I stop eating my grilled cheese sandwich mid-bite. Skandar stops eating also, but less sharply. He simply sets down his chicken sandwich and pats his cup farther away from the edge.

"Where do you want to go?" I ask Skandar. He thinks for a moment, processing all of the stations in his head quickly. "Plants, I guess."

As I start to lead him over to the plants station, realization slaps me. "You can't see the plants, though. How are you going to – '' I start, but am soon interrupted by Skandar.

He sighs. "Luciana, I know I'm not going to do very well in this thing, but I'd at least like for you to have a _chance_." Skandar explains to me, as if I'm a kindergartener, in a hushed tone. I bite on my lip for a second before continuing to lead him down the room. "You _will _do fine, Skandar," I mutter under my breath, unsure if he heard me or not.

Jace, Jax, and Kaya are at the plants station already. It appears that Jax and Kaya are in an alliance of some sort, as they are sitting extremely close together and chatting as they study the plants. As I grab one of the plant-books and prepare to try my best to read it to Skandar, I see a shadow darting around the station out of the corner of my eye.

Gritting my teeth, I tell Skandar to stay put and I wander around the station until I find what I am looking for.

"Will you quit it?" I snap at Ren Hanapon, whom quickly straightens out his shirt and stands tall once I acknowledge him. My fists clenched at my sides, I see that he is hardly taller than me, even standing straight like he is at the moment.

"Quit what?" Ren questions, stubbing his feet against each other casually. He knows… He has been following Skandar and me around since Training began, and it's incredibly irritating.

"Why have you been following me?" I ask, folding my arms across my chest. Ren's gaze snaps down to his feet, and his explanation comes out in a blur of a sentence. "Well, I… I think you seem really really sweet and great and you have a nice-looking face and your hair looks soft." He says quickly, his words stumbling over one another.

My pale cheeks surely burn into a bright red, highlighting my face, though I don't respond. I wasn't exactly prepared for anything like this…

"Well, this is awkward," Ren mumbles. A silence fills the air until I shatter it. "Do you… do you want to train… with Skandar and me?" I ask quietly, rolling my words out. Ren nods in response, taking a place beside me almost instantly.

**District Twelve**

**Riverann "River" Booe's POV**

The spear lands a few inches away from the stuffed dummy's neck.

Damnit.

I bristle slightly at the short giggling sounds from the person next up at the spear station, Baron Kiol. He smirks at me before launching a spear straight into the foamy heart of a dummy.

I turn away from this, humiliation creeping up my body rather fastly. I spy Ren standing next to Luciana and Skandar at the climbing station, and sigh once I see his cloudy eyes are once again staring at _her_. Ren is a likeable kid, but I think that his crush on Luciana is a bit too big for his own good.

As I wait for my turn in the spear station again, I see that Mellow, Wyatt, Solstice, and Amanda are all at the knife station. Amanda flings knives into random places, laughing hysterically as they sink into solid objects. One false move, and the sharp edge could cut into someone's soft flesh…

Mellow seems to be the most scared of the trio, curling herself into a ball-shape and holding her head.

"Nanananana come on, come on, come on!" Amanda shrieks, sending a knife flying upwards. It soars back down quickly, and I wince once I see that it very slightly pricks Mellow in the knee, and a small streak of blood seeps down. The instructors all rush towards the station, only to be thrown back harshly by a now-angered Mellow.

She looks… different. Her eyes are a cold, calculating black, though I could have sworn that they were a bright green just moments ago.

Mellow lunges at Amanda and her sharp nails dig into her shoulders. One of the instructors, Hephard, grabs Mellow and attempts to pry her off Amanda. It is a slow but sure process, with Mellow still clawing at Amanda and kicking at Hephard feistily. Once she is finally fully off of Amanda, she passes out and falls to the ground.

Well, somebody has serious mental issues. Whispers are thrown across the room as the girl is carried into the elevator.

"Tributes, Training will be ending a bit early today. Please take the next available elevator back to your compartment."

**Well, that was… interesting, I hope. Personally, I don't like this chapter very much. At all.**

**Confession time. I screwed up, big time. I forgot a key detail on one of my tributes: Ren is colorblind. I've gone and edited that, so yeah… It's all good now.**

**This chapter is called Unchained because frankly, a few weird unchained-y-ish thingies go on in this chapter (in a way) and secondly, because there is a song that is instrumental and called Naughty Trained, and it reminded me of training, and it was used in a dance called Unchained. XD  
**

**I am going to be on vacation from July 9****th**** toJuly 18****th****, and I'm going to try to somehow update but most likely, I won't be able to. (insert sad face)**

**Also, have any of you ever seen the show Happy Tree Friends? It's like a cartoon version of the Hunger Games and it's extremely disturbing…**

**So, review and all that good stuff. :)**

**~What did they do in the old days when they were feeling obscure?~**

**People by Audrey Ryan**


	8. Private Eyes

**So, this chapter will be a bit different. It is going to be starting at lunch and then go past some of the private sessions.**

**If your tribute hasn't had a POV yet, then this is the chapter they will have it :D**

**So, I'll start now!**

**District Eleven**

**Michante Hark's POV**

Bella Rue stands in front of me, carefully looking at a bloody hunk of meat with a look of disgust smothered on her face. Though she looks repulsed by the sight of the thing, I feel the need to lead her on the right path.

"My tribe wouldn't approve of that," I pipe up, poking a finger at the meat.

She glares daggers at me. "Oh, shut up."

Launching the meat back into its bag, she stomps off with an incomplete dish. Well, _somebody _has quite an attitude. As a child, I was taught to try to help people; to be polite even when others weren't polite to me.

Everyone in this game thinks that I am… a freak. They don't know what I am speaking of when I utter things about my tribe. I am not afraid to be myself, for I like myself and I don't care if others don't. I don't care that I'm not in an alliance; I do better alone anyways.

I sense a bad spirit when I am in Willow's presence, even worse than Stone Walcott's and Howl Draconix's. She is a small girl of four feet and ten inches, with thin legs and a doll-like face on the outside, but on the inside she is filled with cold, hard ice.

I haven't surveyed all of the tributes as well as I hoped, as I find myself wondering the simplest details about a few of them. But I do see that Jordan of District Ten stands out. She is... different. I don't know how, I don't know why, I just know that she does. Unfortunately, she doesn't understand me either. Jordan sends strange glances my way just like all of the other tributes. But, somehow, she is still different...

Nobody attempts to create a space for me to sit with them, so I just sit alone. I blink in sudden surprise when an extremely pale girl shuffles towards me before plopping her tray down across from me. I recognize her almost instantly.

She has been catching everyone's attention every now and then with her sudden outbursts of insanity; Amanda Leigh.

I don't say a word, just watch her with dark narrowed eyes. I don't need company; I don't _want _company.

"Hayyyyy," Amanda giggles at me, her shocking icy eyes rolling into the back of her head for a moment before she fixes them.

"Hi..." I greet her uncertainly, gulping down some fresh water.

"Did you know..." Amanda starts, giving me a know-it-all look, "...that all my exes live in Texas?"

"What's Texas?" I ask her questionably, raising an eyebrow when she hysterically cackles. She laughs like a car horn... Amanda fades back into reality quickly, though this is short-lived when she falls to the ground and starts shaking rapidly, her eyes rolling into the back of her head again.

All is quiet for a moment. "She's having an exorcism!" River Booe exclaims, causing rupturing laughter from the Career table.

"No, she isn't, you idiot! Even if she _was, _which she _isn't_, we would all just let her get possessed or whatever and die. I mean, the unstable ones are the most dangerous." Howl snaps, smirking at the rest of the room as the Careers snort at the apparent humor of it.

"Besides," Stone pipes up, smiling toothily like a wolf. "If anybody has an exorcism, it's Mellow."

The attention of the entire room shifts to Mellow, whose cheeks flush instinctively. She quickly attempts to hide her face behind her long red hair.

Almost everyone spits out an insult of some sort at Mellow's blatant mental problems, but I am more focused on the girl flopping around on the ground. Has everyone really forgotten about her already?

"Tributes, we are now starting private sessions. Please sort yourselves into a line according to district, with the male first and then the female."

**District Four**

**Isabella "Bella" Rue's POV**

Upon hearing this, I immediately join the quickly forming line, standing directly behind Max and before Jace. Jace has been one of _those_, whom hide until the very end. He is allies with Viktor Blake, I think, as I saw them whispering to each other earlier this day.

Max's Twelve reserve, Ren, is absentmindedly staring at Luciana as he walks, and this causes him to crash into the wall. He stumbles around on the ground before quickly taking his place behind Willow Lockett. There is something about her that I cannot place my finger on, something wrong... She turns to Ren and whispers something to him before smiling. His face turns a considerate amount paler and he gulps.

"Baron Kiol." Baron sends a dirty look at Ayame before approaching and entering the Training room. Ayame's bright eye twitches but she maintains self-control.

I like Ayame. She is probably my closest friend here, other than Max. But Max has been... distant. I have never seen the lust for blood in his eyes, the sharp glint when he said that he was killing Ren and Lace. I don't understand what they did. Ren _has _been a bit annoying, following Luciana like a lost animal, but it's more cute than irritating. Lace was disrespectful, as said by Howl, but I personally think that there is just something wrong with the girl's voice, disabling her to be able to talk.

The awkward silence is a bit unnerving, but everyone is at least a little nervous. Max's hand touches mine just slightly and I twitch.

The silence is even too much for Ren, whom always makes witty little comments here and there. But now he stays still.

Baron steps out, a large smirk on his face, leading me to believe he did well. I wonder how the fifteen minutes managed to slip away so fast, but I don't question it. I've learned that once you question something, it just leads to trouble. It's much safer to believe everything you're told and do what you're taught is right.

"Ayame Wolfe." Ayame stands up straight, stepping into the center in a cookie-cutter-clean style. I silently bid her good luck, knowing that she'll need it. I'm not _blind_… I throw a glance at Skandar absentmindedly before returning to my thoughts. I see the hungry look in Howl's eyes… Howl's brother killed Ayame's brother, and I know for a fact that Howl wants this legacy of a sort to continue on.

My eyes drift around at my fellow tributes. Jax looks slightly nervous, though a bit annoyed by a babbling Amanda. Solstice is trembling slightly, not meeting anyone's gaze. Kaya is glancing around suspiciously at everyone, a cold look in her eyes. Arlin is mumbling something to Lace, who seems to be hyperventilating or something of the sort.

Ayame walks out of the room neatly, giving me a shadowy smile.

"Stone Walcott." Stone glances around the room quickly before walking into the center. His eyes land squarely on mine for a moment before he turns.

_What was that? _I ponder it for a second before shaking it off. No, I cannot focus on these sorts of things right now. I _must _focus solely on the Games… I _must _win and return home to my sister…

Oh, my heart, it breaks every time I think about her… that's why I shouldn't… why I _can't…_

I continue pushing my mind to stay blank for the next fifteen minutes. Howl is called and skips merrily into the room. I hear the sounds of knives rushing through the air, forcing themselves to sink into practice-dummies.

Howl probably wishes they were real people…

I can't help but wonder about Luciana. She's such a small girl, and she has been helping Skandar around all this time. What did she ever do to Howl besides being born? When Howl steps out of the room, I am quite startled by the thirsty look in her eyes.

"Jax Hood." Jax stumbles into the center, not glancing back at anyone.

_Yeah, there's people all around me… _I look at them warily. The majority of them are younger than me, and many of the girls are smaller than me. Twenty-three of these people were born to die.

When Jax steps out, some of the anxiety he seemed to have has disappeared. He smoothly makes his way out of the room.

"Amanda Leigh." Oh, God, this should be interestimg.

Amanda walks on the very tip of her toes, comparable to a ballerina. She inches towards the door, and slams it shut once she is inside. I immediately hear crashing noises, and wince.

I begin to quiver a bit, but instantly stop myself. I am a _Career. _I _have _to show no fear… _Be like Howl._

Amanda is thrown out of the room, hitting the wall roughly. "Why'd you have to go and make things so complicated?" she cries out before running out of the small room.

**District Six**

**Viktor Blake's POV**

"Max Leo." Max stands, gulping before walking straight into the bright lights of the Training room. I look over at Bella, and see that she is rather pale, and her eyes have widened quite a lot. She looks a bit nervous for a Career, but then again only about half of the Careers are very vicious this year.

Jace and I chatted about how awful that is, about how they have been scaring the crap out of their 'reserves'. I don't like it. I don't think it's right at all. You should not claim a life to take. It just… isn't humane.

The door opens, showing a shallowly-smiling Max. He still look just as nervous as he did when he went in, so I am not sure if he did well or not.

"Isabella Rue." The girl does not even seem irritated by the use of her name, like she always does. When she walks through the door and into the Training center, I can see her thin legs shaking slightly, though noticeable. It interests me how she didn't really _plan _on volunteering. It is almost like she is a normal volunteer from a normal district… I look around at the others. Mellow is doing that thing about, where her eyes are blackened and dusty and her lips are curled into a cruel smile. There is something deeply _wrong _about her.

River smiles at me, and I forcedly smile back. She is in Jace and I's alliance, and we meant for it to be larger with Mack, but he declined on account of wanting Jordan to be able to tag along.

Bella steps nimbly out of the room, stumbling out of the room quickly, obviously in quite a hurry.

"Jace Leighton." I grin at Jace hopefully, though he does not return it. He disappears into the Training room doors and I wish him the best.

I am glad that all of the Careers are gone now, because they seemed to be making everybody nervous. The aura around them supports that, as for it is threatening and… dark. It makes you feel tight on the inside and stiff on the outside, and you get that hunter-and-prey feeling that I feel every so often.

The Careers are odd, though, each in their own way. Ayame seems indifferent, and not enjoying her time as the rest of them are. Baron is angry, and it seems to be directed at Ayame. Howl is… demonic. But there's something buried under the sadism in her eyes, something I can't place exactly. Stone is a larger, male version of Howl. Bella has a heart, a big one, and she would only like to keep her sister safe. With Max, it seems as if there is an evil side and an angelic side. He only needs to choose which one he'll use.

"Solstice Hart." I hardly even noticed Jace walking out of the room, but now he has disappeared. I watch as the mute girl steps into the room, the fear inside of her jutting out harshly.

**District Ten**

**Mackenzie "Mack" Taner**

It's too hot inside. It's too hot outside. It reminds me of lazy days back in District Ten, in a way. It was always hot inside and out once the school year ended, and nobody knew what to do other than sit around and watch grass grow.

Anyway, it just feels too… warm. It is probably just me being nervous, though.

"Mack," my mentor, Furmant, peeks his head into the room. "The scores are about to come on. Just guessing here, but you probably want to watch it. So come on."

I follow him to the main room, where Jordan resides, nibbling on her bottom lip. Her teeth are rather sharp, so I hope she doesn't end up causing her lip to bleed again…

As always, they start with District One. Baron shows up with a nine, and I don't question it. He's an obvious threat, seemingly getting along fine with Stone and Howl. Ayame pops up onto the screen, her face porcelain and her hair bright red. She receives a seven, surprising me a bit. I wonder what the other Careers will think of that…He's an obvious threat, seemingly getting along fine with Stone and Howl.

I gulp when I see Stone's picture. He terrifies me, he terrifies _everyone_, far too much for words. He gets a _ten_. Howl also gets a ten, I know that this must be a record. Twelve-year-olds hardly ever score anything above a six. I decide that the District Two pair are by far the most lethal.

Furmant mutters something under his breath when Amanda comes up with a one. I feel a pang of sorrow for her, as she obviously does not have the simplest idea of what's going on around her. Jax, who's allies with Kaya of District Six, gets a seven.

Max, the odd slightly-deranged boy, receives an impressive ten. He is a threat, even more pulsing than some of the Career alliance. Bella gets an eight, which is average for a Career.

I know that Jace is in an alliance with Viktor, and that River girl may or may not be mixed into it. He earns a six, which I think is a great score. You slip right under the radar, whilst still being slightly threatening. Solstice receives a five, which is also well and slippery.

Viktor Blake gets a six, while his district partner earns herself a seven. I know that Kaya is allies with Jax, but that's all I know about her.

Skandar receives a two, which is understandable. He's _blind_, and without a guide he probably had no idea where anything in the center was. Twelve-year-old Luciana gets a five, and that is also understandable. She has been helping Skandar the last few days and most likely did not have any time to train. Plus, she has Howl after her.

As her sweet face disappears from the screen, I just hope those small legs are quick enough to outrun Howl.

**District One**

**Baron Kiol's POV**

"My score was higher than yours! My score was higher than yours!" I taunt Ayame, skipping around in merry circles around her.

Her jaw tightens. "I know. Now shut up and pay attention to the scores."

I make a pouting face, but obey and look up at the screen. The District Eight boy, Wylie or Wyden or whatever, has gotten a four. I laugh at him, poking his face on the television. My laughing immediately stops when I see that not-so-mellow Mellow earned an _eleven._

"She must have gone all psycho in her session," I muse. "That's the only way that freak could have gotten anything above a four."

For once, Ayame and I agree on something, as she nods her head.

The emo boy from District Nine, Arlin, receives an eight. I reluctantly accept this, not wanting any _stable _person to outshine the Careers. Max's reserve, Lace, appears on the screen with a six.

Mackenzie, or Mack, earns a seven. "Same score you got," I hiss at Ayame. She glares at me in response, not saying anything. "From _Ten_." I snap, before averting my eyes to the screen once more. Jordan gets a five, which is average.

I am also irritated when Michante comes up with a nine. He is a threat, but I have not paid any attention to him at all. Damn… I swallow when I see Willow's expressionless face with a ten. She is tiny, thin, and absolutely pathetic on the outside. Yet she has a ten…

The District Twelve pair both receive sixes. I find that fitting, as they are from the grimiest district.

Our mentor storms out in a huff, obviously upset that outlying districts have gotten better scores than us. Ayame stands to leave to her room, but I throw a tiny knife that misses her neck by inches. It lodges itself deep into the wall.

Ayame glares at me, gripping the knife and yanking it out of the wall roughly. "Save it for the Games, Baron." She snaps before throwing the knife onto the ground, where it makes a screech, and strolling off to her room.

God, I hate her.

**I finally finished! I finally finished! (kazoo and confetti party)**

**Okay, y'all, I know that this got out later than usual. But I went on vacation, and was rescheduled to come back on the 16****th****. But my mother broke and dislocated her ankle on our way back, and so that postponed us a bit. Anyhow, she's fine now!**

**So, the next chapter is the interviews! YAY! I hate the Interviews, but after the interviews are THE GAMES! **

**I am so excited! Aren't you?**

**This is called Private Eyes because of the private sessions. It may or may not be named after a dance called Private Eyes…**

**Oh, and I have added 'theme songs' to the blog! So if you gave your character a song that fits them in the form, that is their theme song. **

**Well, review! :D**

**~No, I'm not saying I'm sorry. One day, maybe we'll meet again~**

**Closer to the Edge by 30 Seconds to Mars**


	9. Children

**Sup, y'all! So, today are the interviews! This chapter probably won't be very long, because there isn't much going on in the interviews…**

**And I'm pretty sure there's something wrong with the word-count or something. It said that last chapter only had 1000 words, but I'm positive it had about 3200. Oh, well…**

**The interviews shall be in the interviewer, Fanta Fre's, point of view.**

**Fanta Fre's POV**

My second job as an interviewer. Due to Caeser's unfortunate demise directly before last year's Hunger Games, they plucked me out of hundreds. I'm quite alright with that, as now my life is sweet like cinnamon.

I am beautiful. I sparkle in the moonlight, glittery golden flakes covering my entire body, and my hair a stunning platinum…

I take my seat, bathing in the glory of the crowd cheering my name. I wave at them before introducing my first tribute.

I welcome Ayame Wolf onto the stage. She is a rather tall, slim girl with curly red hair and eccentric eyes. She has on layers of thick mascara to make her eyes pop even more, and she is wearing a short dark blue dress with white-polka-dots everywhere. She wears high-heeled white shoes along with bright red lipstick. Ayame is rather shy, and seems stunned when I mention her siblings in previous Hunger Games. She does not bring that topic to any further discussion, but her applause is louder than I expected. I suppose the crowd likes underdogs, even if they are from the _Career _alliance…

Baron Kiol steps up next, with slicked-back hair and a glittery suit. He is only fourteen, so the crowd was obviously wary of him, even with a training score as high as a nine. However, Baron turns out to be just as bloodthirsty as his score provoked the mind to think of. He makes snotty little comments here and there about Ayame, and the cameras quickly pan over to her irritated face. His response is even louder than Ayame's.

Next up is Howl Draconix, the twelve-year-old volunteer. She wears a pitch-black dress with long, loose sleeves that fit neatly around her arms. She has on average-looking black flats, and her dark hair is done up into a tight ponytail with clean bangs across her forehead. Opposite to her small appearance, Howl's personality is vicious. She insults every other tribute, minus the Careers. Most of Howl's taunts seem to be directed at Luciana Sage, whom hides her reddening face whenever the cameras pan her way. Howl gets a fantastic response, and I am positive she will earn sponsors.

Stone Walcott has on a simple black tuxedo and his hair is gelled up to a nice effect. He received an identical score to Howl, though it is a bit more impressive with her as she is only twelve years old. Stone has a rather flirty, social personality and causes me to blush several times. The majority of the female crowd are practically in love with him by the time his interview is over.

Nervousness sets in once Amanda Leigh leaps up onto the stage. She seems to be mentally unstable, seeing as she attacked other Chariots during the Tribute Parade. She has very pretty blue eyes, and they stand out with the icy blue strapless gown she wears, so long that it floods over her shoes. Amanda first bursts into tears and starts reciting an acceptance speech, saying "Thank you, Mother and Father, for giving me this chance, for supporting me all this way – '' before I interrupt her and tell her that this is an interview for the Hunger Games. Her expression darkens and she coldly says, "Mother always said the scarlet fever would be my final departure." The crowd doesn't know what to say to this. Then she starts screaming on about 'baby Yvonne'. Amanda doesn't earn any applause, just awkward coughing and a few timid claps.

I am relieved to see Jax Hood, for he first and foremost apologizes for his district partner being a lunatic. The crowd immediately loves this, and don't seem to care much about the hideous mismatch of colors as a suit. Jax is quiet, but plenty likeable for his small, witty comments here and there. He gets a wonderful applause, and I find myself wishing him the best.

Isabella, or _Bella_ as she insists me to call her, sits down neatly in a one-shouldered white dress that falls to her knees. The top is satiny and soft, whereas the bottom is puffed out with layers of fabric. She immediately thanks me for interviewing her, and I believe her to be a very polite girl. Once I ask her about her sister, she seems hesitant to alert me that April has some awful disease. The crowd loves her, how her personality is stuck between Career and non-Career.

Max Leo is certainly… interesting. He frantically looks from side to side, seemingly troubled by what words to respond with. He also wears a tuxedo, though his is a dark ocean-blue. His hair seems to be in its natural state, clean and a bit waved over to a side. His response is alright, though everyone seems to be struggling with his strange personality.

Dread washes over me as Solstice Hart nimbly steps up onto the stage. She cannot speak… How will she communicate? Ugh, I _must _do my best no matter what happens. At least the girl is dressed well. She wears an incredibly pale-pink dress with lace creating fascinating patterns all over it, the sleeves small and puffed out and the shirt reaching her knees. It fits her well, and her hair lies curled at her shoulders. Solstice wears pale lipstick, and her eyes seem enlarged. She awkwardly answers with simple nods, shrugs, or frowns. The crowd is on the edge with her, she receives a few numb claps but that's all.

I am relieved to see that Jace Leighton is fully capable of speaking. He has on yet another tuxedo, this time in a reflective silver, and I begin to question the stylist's creativity before shaking it off. He's a charming young man, saying witty comments here and there, causing the crowd to laugh wholeheartedly. Once I question him about his views on the other tributes, particularly the Careers, his face hardens quite noticeably and he mutters something unintelligible. His response is loud and thundering.

Kaya Copper quickly hops up onto the stage, her white heels clanking on the solid surface. Her shiny dark brown hair is tossed up into a high bouncy ponytail, and she is wearing a bright, mint-green layered dress with white frill on the end of each layer. Thick white straps wrap around her shoulders, keeping the dress from falling. Kaya is very easy to like, the words spilling out of her mouth sounding honest and true. Nearing the end of her interview, she has a personality change, snapping sarcastically at everything I say. Her applause is shy and… uneven.

I swallow once I see the rather cold look painted on Viktor Blake's face. He seems unfriendly, and I don't enjoy unfriendly people much. He is wearing a snowy white suit, with the long sleeves cuffed at his wrists. Viktor mostly fidgets with the cuffs, rarely even replying to my eager questions. The crowd doesn't like this very much. He doesn't receive many applause, though he does get enough to perhaps get a sponsor.

My heart melts as I see Luciana Sage tip-toeing hesitantly upwards to the stage. She is wearing a long-sleeved white dress that reaches her knees, with the sleeves being very loose and making her hands look smaller than usual, along with the full skirt making her legs look skinnier. Her hair is done up in a smooth bun, and she wears hardly any makeup. Luciana seems to be another poor young girl, and the crowd is practically in love with her cuteness.

_Poor boy… _Skandar Dagwood stumbling onto the stage, looking as if he's about to fall over before Ayame and Luciana help him. Ayame is scolded by the Careers, whereas Luciana continues to guide him to his chair, quickly running off when he's settled. He laughs awkwardly and I examine his clean white shirt and pitch-black pants with classic black suspenders over his shoulders. I ask him rather simple question, neatly avoiding the sensitive subject of his blindness. He receives charity-applause, and will most likely earn sponsor gifts by being pitiful and… helpless.

Mellow Monack is incredibly small, much tinier than anybody expected her to be, what with her training score of an eleven. She is wearing a simple dress, with a white tank-top-ish top and a knee-length dark green skirt. Her bright hair is straight and seemingly untouched, though brushed thoroughly. Mellow is rather shy, and humble about mostly everything. Everyone is transfixed by her, for how could this girl have gotten an eleven? Her applause is average; strange for such a high score.

I inwardly groan when I see another tuxedo on Wyatt James. It is a boring, plain black suit. I am so sick of tuxedos! Every male except Skandar has had one! These stylists should really be fired… or killed… whichever. Wyatt seems like he should be from District Three, as he is so… nerdy. He seems nervous the entire time, and awfully awkward. He doesn't receive many applause, but I quietly giggle as he embraces Mellow gracefully once he steps off the stage.

Another mute. Lace Chandler stares at her shiny black shoes as she takes her seat. I am fairly certain that Caeser _never _had anybody as difficult to interview as I am today. Like Solstice, Lace will probably receive very few applause. At least the girl is dressed nicely. She has on a blindingly bright pink strapless dress, which clings to her thin body and ends just above her knee, and her stunning blonde hair is curled. Her interview goes just as terrible as Solstice's, to my dismay, and with the exact same crowd reaction.

There is something unsettling about Arlin Tainte, I am not sure what it is but it's there. He is wearing a maroon suit, with his hair smoothed to the right side. He glances down at his hands every now and then, looking completely and utterly _bored_. I ask question after question, and he hardly bothers to answer any of them. The crowd becomes angered with his disability to cooperate and he doesn't earn many applause, though there are a few that seem to like his stubbornness.

I am relieved when I see the look of ease on Jordan Smith's face. Finally, someone that won't be almost impossible to interview. She wears a horrible cow-skin dress that will forever haunt my dreams, and her hair is in a side-ponytail with a cowbell on her white ribbon. Jordan seems plenty intelligent, though every now and then her face goes absolutely blank and I have to remind her of what we were talking about. Nevertheless, Jordan's applause is deafening and she grins from ear-to-ear as she walks off the stage.

Mackenzie Taner insists that I call him Mack the moment he sits down, in a cow-skin tuxedo. I comment on the cow-skin, and he darkly mutters something about murder. The crowd takes this as a joke and laugh hysterically, seemingly boosting Mack's confidence. He tells me a sob story of how his father died, carefully pointing out Jordan's help in this. The audience loves him, and I believe that the District Ten pair are one of the most popular.

Goosebumps rise onto my arms once I see Willow Lockett, as her movements are robotic and her face is blank. Slowly, the creepiness fades away when she launches a wide smile at the audience. She is wearing a plain black dress with sleeves that reach her elbows, and a full skirt that falls a little below her skinny knees. Willow blonde hair is done up in a fancy bun, and her smile is sweet and slightly angelic. All of her answers are adorable and she seems scared, though there doesn't seem to be much feeling in her voice. Only I notice this, however, and her applause is fantastic.

There are no words for how strangely Michante Hark steps onto the stage. He takes long, slow strides and looks around, panicked, with dark eyes. He is wearing a tuxedo with brightly assorted flowers glued onto it, and his hair is gelled back. I first ask him how he's doing, and he doesn't respond. Michante doesn't respond to anything I ask him, and by the time the interview is over, half the crowd is asleep.

Worry stretches over Riverann's face as she sits down, smoothing out her skirt. Her dress is a blood-red, and certainly nothing special. It is a boring design I have seen many times before; tight until it reaches a full skirt that falls around her ankles. River's dark hair is in a twisty bun, right on top of her head. She's friendly enough, making little jokes here and there. The applause she receives is alright, though the crowd is most likely extremely bored by now.

Last but not least, Ren Hanapon skips onto the stage, grinning widely. He wears an adorable white button-up shirt, with a grey vest and matching dress-pants. Ren is a funny kid, and probably one of the most easy-going to interview. The audience loves him, and his claps are stupendous.

Finally, the interviews are over. I am relieved but at the same time… stressed. I don't want the majority of these children to die.

I remember last year, my first interviewing job, and tears leaked down my face as I watched the bloodbath the next day. But I cannot do that this time. I can't show that I care.

They're just children…

**AH! ERMAGERD, I AM DONE WITH THE INTERVIEWS!**

**(calms down) Sorry, I'm just… so… excited! The bloodbath is next! The bloodbath is next!**

**So, apologies. This was up rather late. And to the anonymous reviewer, it's only been eight days since I last updated, not a week and a half. XD**

**Updates will be weekly. They've always been weekly, but I am hereby declaring it.**

**Who do you think is going to die? I already know the bloodbaths and… it saddens me. But anyhow, may the odds be EVER in your favor! :D**


	10. Help, I'm Alive

**AHHHHHHH! The Games! They're here! They're impatiently waiting for me to get through this author's note and get into the story!**

**Gosh, I'm just so emotional! All the characters! All the feels! **

**Okay, first off, thanks for supporting this story for so long. Second of all, **_**I am deeply in love with every single one of these characters**_**. Like, literally, there isn't anybody I don't like. At first there were a few I didn't enjoy as much, but now I love everyone.**

**Six POVs today! Oh, and the song for this chapter is Help, I'm Alive by Metric. :)**

**So, let's start…**

**District Eight**

**Wyatt James' POV**

My eyes snap open in a sort of fear, but more in a surprised way. Where has the time gone? Where has my _life_ gone? I'm not sure, but it's vanished and I can't seem to find it anywhere.

Resistance is futile. I will be better off getting out of bed… My movements are stiff with the fear circulating through me, yet I somehow still manage to reach the kitchen, which has Mellow seated in it, staring straight ahead blankly.

I clear my dry throat. "Hello," I greet Mellow, the cheerfulness in my voice fading off. She doesn't really respond, but tilts her head towards me in acknowledgement.

"I'm afraid," Mellow mutters, awkwardly fiddling with her fingers for a moment.

"Of the Games?" I ask. She of all people doesn't have anything to be afraid of. Mellow has some odd thing with her, where she goes slightly insane at random times, so I would think she wouldn't be very worried about her well-being. Even if she _is _one of the smallest of the bunch.

Mellow nods. "You know, you don't have much to be afraid of," I tell her, cracking a small smile.

"I do," Mellow responds quietly. I make a small, forced laugh. "You don't have to be afraid, Mellow, even if you get into trouble, you always have me."

She thinks about this, hesitating before replying. "Yes, I do. Speaking of that… why do you hang around me? Why did you ally with me? I'm nothing but bad luck." The questions flood my mind, though the answers are quite easy.

"You're different," I tell her, smiling. "You may think you're bad luck, but I can't see anything but good."

She smiles, and gathering up my little courage, I lay my hand onto hers.

"Wyatt? Mellow?" My mentor, Jenisse, timidly steps into the room. "It's time."

**District Eleven**

**Willow Lockett's POV**

"Don't touch me," I snap at Colleen, my stylist. Colleen places her hands on her hips, pursing her lips angrily.

"Sorry, _sweetheart_," she snarls before returning to buttoning up my shirt.

"Shut up," I say. "Just do your job and shut up."

Colleen mutters angry curse words under her breath, but doesn't reply to me. Once she has buttoned up my shirt, she rests a thin jacket over my shoulders.

"Done." Colleen says, digging her icy hands into my skin to turn my face towards the mirror. I am wearing a light brown button-up shirt, loose light brown shorts, and a thin black jacket. On my rather large feet are dark brown running shoes, and my blonde hair is racked up into a tight ponytail.

"You're welcome," Colleen snaps at me. I glare at her.

"I never said thank you," I say, plenty aware of the blankness in my voice.

Muttering something else under her breath, Colleen shoves me into the cylinder. I glare at her as I am lifted up onto the platform, until I can no longer see her and am surrounded by the other tributes.

Viktor Blake stands on my right, icily examining his surroundings to piece together what little bits we have of the arena. On my left is Lace Chandler, the mute. She looks frightened, and I can plainly hear her heart beating louder, like a hammer. Come to think of it, I can almost hear everyone's rapid heartbeats and breathing. They're still alive and they're already worried. The heartbeats and breaths mend together, creating a fascinating symphony of prominent fear.

Dirt lies everywhere, pale dirt that matches my shirt and shorts almost perfectly. From where I stand, I cannot really see the arena at all. I suppose the Gamemakers want it to be a surprise… I only see dirt, and the glistening Cornucopia in the center.

The countdown begins.

_Ten… _I am calm. Nothing startles me, and nothing ever will.

_Nine… _The pace of everyone's breathing is now comparable to the speed of a runaway train.

_Eight… _

_Seven… _I can practically feel the tension of everyone else radiating off of them and attempting to dig into me.

_Six… _Silly tension, emotions are for children.

_Five… _And I am not a child.

_Four… _It's nearly impossible for me to even act like a child. It's hard for me to be soft, and tough to be tender.

_Three… _I set my eyes on the sharp daggers resting by a tiny, bright pink sack.

_Two… _

_One!_

The gong sounds, and I set off running.

Howl and Stone are the first ones there, though they don't attempt to harm me in any way as I grasp the dangerous set of knives and the sack.

I steady myself, deciding to hide at the edge of the bloodbath-area and watch. Jordan wrestles Ayame for a large knife, and Ayame looks extremely irritated. Soon enough, Ayame wrenches the knife out of Jordan's tiny hands. Jordan is shoved back against the cornucopia, and shrieks. Mack is about to assist her when Ayame digs the knife squarely into Jordan chest, jabbing at her heart. The dark blood leaks over Jordan's shirt, and she falls to the ground, dead.

Mack looks stunned. He has enough sense, however, to run away. I watch him leave, wondering if I should also flee.

Howl launches a spear that has one direct target; Ayame spins on her heel only to meet a spear flying into her delicate neck. Ayame makes strange noises, lying in a fetal position while choking. Howl skips over to her happily, bending down to meet her. "Go say hi to your weakling sister and brothers," Howl says, grinning as the brightness fades out of Ayame's eyes.

I spy Amanda running around like a crazed chicken, and I remember how much of a nuisance she is to everyone.

Determined, I grab my knives and rush towards the idiotic girl. She doesn't even see me, still leaping around in circles. I could easily throw my knife and end her life… Suddenly, Michante is in front of me. I do not stop, but run into him, proceeding to knock him to the ground, even with my small height and weight.

"Little girl," Michante says gruffly, fright in his eyes. "You do not have to hurt other people. You can – ''

"Shut up and die," I snap, stabbing at his chest. He groans in pain, and I laugh. Stab, stab, and stab again…

**District Four**

**Max Leo's POV**

Michante is dead. Why can't Willow see that? She just keeps stabbing her dagger into his chest, even though his breath is long gone and his face is… dead.

I hear the cracking noise of a skull splitting open, and I turn around to see Baron cradling Kaya's head in his hands, an angry cut along her scalp and her eyes wide open, like they will remain forever. He doesn't have the politeness to even close the corpse's eyelids, and just walks away snickering. I quickly run over to the body and close her eyes.

But then I hear _her._

I look to the right and sure enough, there she is. Obviously panicked and talking to Ren. Luciana and Ren are about to leave, Skandar nowhere to be found, when I leap forward and grab hold of Ren's arm, roughly snapping him back. He cries out in pain and streaks of anger strike in Luciana's eyes.

I throw Ren onto the ground, easily pinning him underneath me. I can see the fear jutting out from his celery-green eyes, and the hope flickering out.

"Luciana, go!" Ren orders, moving his head to look at her. "Just go, please!"

Her face pales considerably, but the girl runs off in a direction she seems to know well. Ren watches as she leaves, and I take this time to jab my spear into his throat.

I leave it in there, watching the pain flickering across his face. He doesn't scream; I suppose that there are times when the agony is too much to even make a sound. His fingers twitch, finding something to dig into, something to hold, to no avail. His mouth tries to form words, something that starts with an L, I think? A minute later, I can tell he is dead.

"You killed him?" surprised, I see Bella standing over me. I stay silent but nod in response, taking note of the odd expression on Bella's face.

Nearby, a similar situation seems to be playing out. River is huddled over Mellow, who seems terrified out of her mind.

Shouldn't she be having one of her mental outbreaks right about now? My eyebrows rise as Wyatt rushes over, stumbling, and punches River's head from behind, causing her to tumble off of Mellow. Mellow quickly rises, her breath catching. After Wyatt whispers something to Mellow, she nods and sprints off, seemingly confident in her district partner's survival.

After Mellow is out of sight, River easily tackles Wyatt to the ground and I wonder if she is aware of the blood leaking down her neck. Another crack, this time coming from the broken neck that lies under the angry red mark on Wyatt's corpse's skin. River flees in the opposite direction of where Mellow went to avoid an angry psychopath.

Glancing around the Cornucopia, I realize that the bloodbath is over. Every tribute except my alliance has fled.

"Hey, Max, look what we caught," Howl snickers from behind me. I turn to face her and Stone, and am thoroughly shocked.

Solstice Hart. Stone and Howl both have a tight grip on each of her arms, and the girl looks utterly helpless. Sympathy flows through me in tiny waves of shivers, not enough to make a large impact though.

**District Nine**

**Arlin Tainte's POV**

Where has she gone?

I should have taken her by the hand, not just assumed she was following me. What if someone took her? What if someone killed her? What if she's dead and it's completely my fault for being an ignorant idiot?

This is all my fault…

For now, I should survey the arena. Perhaps if I look hard enough, I will find Lace…

I escaped the bloodbath about an hour, or perhaps two, ago. The cannons should start firing soon, shouldn't they?

I saw Jordan and Ayame's deaths, but not any others. Jordan… she was a nice girl. Always sugar-sweet, and hung around Mack. Ayame was a Career, but slightly different than the rest of them. Something set her apart, something special that is now dead…

I snap out of my thoughts to see where I am. There is dirt everywhere, matching the thin fabric of my shirt and pants. Is the arena completely… dirt?

No, there is an outline of some contraption in the distance. What is that, exactly?

Walking down a seemingly pre-made path, the outline grows larger. I shuffle along until I reach the strange thing. It's huge, towering over me by quite a lot. It is a bright red and shaped as a circle. The thing has tiny compartments hanging from pillars at every edge, looking extremely unsafe.

Suddenly, I remember seeing these somewhere. In school. Yes, I remember now… a ferris wheel. Before Panem, humans would build hundreds of things like this, called rides. Then they would open up _amusement parks _full of them for people to enjoy, and laugh at.

We are in an amusement park.

I don't, however, know why there is only dirt, as I am positive amusement parks had clean sidewalks with freshly cut grass.

Glancing around, I am startled by all of the outlines I never seemed to notice before. The rides, they are all around us… "Lace?" my voice remains in the warm air, freezing there before dropping at the complete silence.

I sigh at my failure. The one source of happiness in my life, my joy, is snatched away by the cruel, bony hands of humanity.

_Boom! _The cannons are starting.

_Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! _Six dead. Any one of them could be Lace.

Lace, if you're still alive, my regrets are few. If my life is mine… what are my boundaries of finding what I need?

**District Two**

**Stone Walcott's POV**

I press the rather dull knife into Solstice's soft skin, cleanly slicing off another thin layer of flesh. Blood pours down her leg – or at least, what's left of it. I started at her feet, and Solstice is now thoroughly skinned halfway up her right leg. It upsets me that she will most likely bleed out before I have cut all her skin off, but at least it's still incredibly painful. She stopped whimpering about an hour ago. The girl is now silent, and hardly breathing.

I shove the knife into her leg once again, now onto an entirely new spot of skin. Solstice's eyes shut tightly, and a wave of pleasure washes over me.

"Oops, does that hurt?" I chop another layer off. "Sorry, _sweetheart_."

The sound of the knife digging into skin; it's a lovely song of cutting flesh. Solstice's leg doesn't seem to ever stop bleeding, fresh blood spills out every moment.

"Stone, just stop," a voice interrupts me, mid-cut, and I drop the knife, cutting an uneven slice off.

I turn to see Bella staring at me with wide eyes and a pale face. "Huh?" I ask impatiently, turning to look at Solstice again, checking to see she's still there.

"Please just kill her," Bella pleads, her eyes avoiding the heavily bleeding mute lying on the ground.

I glance at Solstice. Should I really just kill her instead of waiting for her to bleed out?

"Fine…" I mutter, cursing under my breath as I stroll back to Solstice. She doesn't appear to have heard our conversation, with her eyes still shut tight and her lips smacked together. "Open your eyes," I order, giving her a minute to open her eyes. She doesn't, much to my irritation. I carefully open her eyelids for her, happy when she squints but still keeps them open.

"'Night," I whisper as I thrust the dull knife into her chest. She stops breathing almost instantly, leading me to believe I caught her right in the heart.

Howl snickers, running over to Solstice's corpse. A cannon fires, signaling her death. Howl rests her palm on the bloody leg for a moment, squealing with delight. "It feels so _strange_!" she shouts happily. I pat her head, laughing. "Get used to it."

**District Eight**

**Mellow Monack's POV**

Help, I'm alive.

I am alive and Wyatt is dead.

After he didn't return for an hour, I checked the cornucopia, only to find his body. His… his neck was broken.

He was as dead as dead could be…

I wouldn't admit it, but now I am positive that I loved him. He was so nice to me, so nice to everybody, that it was practically impossible not to. He remained my ally even after my mental issues were exposed to the tributes. They all poked fun at it; Wyatt didn't even acknowledge it verbally.

Strangely enough, my voice hasn't bothered me since. Perhaps my emotions overlap it. I don't know, and I don't care.

I sit in an oversized tea cup, surrounded by many other oversized tea cups. I am not entirely sure what this arena is yet, but I suppose I will soon enough.

I jump up at the blaring sound of the anthem before staring up at the dark sky. The seal of Panem disappears, and shoots straight into the fatalities.

Ayame's picture-perfect face appears, her eyes boring into me intensely. She was quiet, and much more timid than her fellow Careers. A score of seven was low for her alliance, and I remember Howl killing her earlier today.

Solstice Hart, my former ally, shows up next. Tears prick at my eyes, and a very small one leaks down my cheek. Solstice… I almost forgot about her. I am guessing that Stone murdered her, brutally, and the hole in my heart grows bigger.

The next face is a bit of a surprise; Kaya from District Six. I thought she would survive at least a little farther than this, with her seemingly being bipolar. Then I remember what a monster I am, and how _I _was nearly a bloodbath today.

Tears overflow once Wyatt's sweet face fills the sky. I have to glance down to keep from screaming; though in the back of my mind I wonder how Skandar managed to survive.

Jordan Smith; the kind District Ten female. She seemed so… innocent. Undeserving of this sort of hell, that's for sure. I, on the other case, fully deserve this.

I remember Michante's death… Willow is a horrifying little girl. So small and fragile-looking, yet so _lethal_. She sprung in hopes of killing Amanda, but in the end her weapon cut Michante. I partially hope that I run into her so I can die more quickly, but then again… she terrifies me.

Ren Hanapon's young face appears. For some reason, this affects me more than it should. I never even talked to Ren… but I feel as if I did. As if he was my friend. Really… Ren was everyone's friend.

_I'm back. Did you miss me?_

_No. Go away._

My voice pauses for a moment.

_Ooh, still mad about your boyfriend?_

_Shut up._

_Don't get feisty with me. Actually, you _can't _get feisty without me. _

_What do you mean?_

_I mean you should let loose. Let me take over for a while, and I promise that River will regret ever laying a finger on Prince Charming._

I ponder it.

_I'll think about it._

**Jordan Smith**

**Ayame Wolfe**

**Michante Hark**

**Kaya Copper**

**Ren Hanapon**

**Wyatt James**

**Solstice Hart**

**This was too heartbreaking to write for words.**

**I love every single one of the characters that died today, though Ren was my second-favorite male tribute out of **_**everyone. **_**(cries in corner) Anyhow, the bloodbaths were characters of people that haven't reviewed or have two characters. I wanted to make it fair, so don't kill me... DX**

**Well, guys, this is the bloodbath. I hope that you enjoyed it, though I can barely read it without feeling unbearably sad. **

**Did you expect any of the bloodbaths? Or were they all surprises?**

**Also, I have icky news. School starts on August 6th. I am going to keep u with weekly updates, though sometimes it might be broken. I'll try my hardest, though!**

**Review, please. :)**

**~Help, I'm alive, my heart keeps beating like a hammer. Hard to be soft, tough to be tender. Come take my pulse, the pace is on a runaway train~**

**Help, I'm Alive by Metric **


	11. Tomorrow Never Knows

**Hello, my pita-chips! How are you? Are you ready for the second day of the Games? :x**

**There will be five POVs today, as will the majority of the Games chapters, unless it's a very important chapter that needs more POVs…**

**The song for this chapter is Tomorrow Never Knows by Carla Azar and Alison Mosshart.**

**Unfortunately, I started school. I probably won't have a horribly insane amount of homework for a while, however. :D**

**Writing time!**

**District Seven**

**Luciana Sage's POV**

I wake up heavily strapped into a swing. Skandar and I spent the night at this odd, large swingset. I am not entirely sure if I can even call it that, however, as there is a humongous cylinder metal thing holding all of the swings around it. It looks to be something from before Panem, as I can't recognize it…

Around three in the morning, Skandar awkwardly asked if I could move him a bit farther away from me, most likely due to my excessive sobbing. I was numb and far beyond tears for the majority of the night, but eventually I started to cry and couldn't stop.

Now my eyes are dry.

I just want to turn off my mind, if that's possible. It would be so much less painful, so much less horrifically real, if that was possible…

"Luci?" Skandar's voice interrupts my thoughts. "Are you awake?"

It takes me a moment to find my voice, which has been lost for quite a while now. "Y-yes…"

Skandar hesitates before speaking again.

"I'm sorry, Luciana, I really am…"

"It's alright…"

Skandar doesn't respond, but grabs hold of the chain attached to his swing, keeping it in a strong grip. "Can you…uh, if it isn't too much trouble, I mean…" he trails off. Before he can attempt to finish, I quickly unbuckle him from his swing and help him up. "Thanks," he says with a small laugh. I try to force a smile, but swallow it when I realize it's futile.

The seriousness in the air reaches its peak. "It helps to try to accept it." Skandar says softly, blinking his sightless eyes a few times. "What?" I ask.

"When _this _happened," Skandar reaches his fingers up to his eyes, gently tapping his eyelid, "I just accepted it. I didn't want to be angry. I didn't care about pain or sorrow or anything, I just wanted to be happy."

I don't respond. Skandar continues. "Let's just remember him for who he was, what a fantastic person he was."

"Yeah." It takes me a moment to regain my voice, but when I do I can only agree with him.

I softly kick my foot into the other, staring at the ground. Suddenly, I remember when I first talked to Ren. The second day of Training, and he had been following Skandar and me. He did the exact same thing, though much more nervously.

I guess we'll just have to adjust.

**District Ten**

**Mackenzie "Mack" Taner's POV**

Some may find the miraculous goodness inside others, but unfortunately, I lack that trait.

I simply cannot find anything good inside Willow Lockett. She killed her district partner, rather brutally, and she seems perfectly fine being alone. No thirteen-year-old girl should be completely content with being alone in the Hunger Games.

I am following her from afar, just because I suppose she's interesting. I don't have much else to do, now that Jordan's dead. But I don't want to think about that until I have to…

At the moment, Willow is tapping her pale fingers onto the humongous slingshot-esque contraption in front of her. I've already figured out the arena; and I am sure Willow has. She's smart, I'll give her that. Come to think of it, the best villains are usually geniuses.

That's when I trip, falling face-first into the ground and groaning once as the air is shoved out of my lungs.

Once my eyes have opened once more, Willow is standing over me, an eerie smile painted on her face. I leap up, stepping back nervously as the girl, nearly a foot shorter than me, comes closer.

"Hello." Her voice is a flat line, the emotion drained out of it.

I've never spoken to her before, so I don't know if it's always been like this or if she has had a sudden change.

"Choose your last words." Willow says calmly, the smile remaining. I furrow my eyebrows together, irritated at her apparent overconfidence. Once the silence grows too loud, she steps closer, sighing.

"This is the last time. Because you and I… we were born to _die._" The last part is hissed, sounding like something out of a snake. The girl's fingernail's lunge for my throat, and she manages to knock me to the ground, one of her nails cutting my cheek, before I kick her in the stomach, sending her small body flying off. Doing a flip of some sort in the air, Willow lands, perfectly balanced, and wastes no time before running towards me again.

Though it takes much of me, I smack Willow's chin upwards. I can hear the crack of a tooth or something along those lines as her teeth collide with each other. I slowly back away as she coughs up dark blood.

Now turning into a full-on sprint, I stop immediately when I hear footsteps. I turn around, fists ready, though I slightly lower them when I see Jace, Viktor, and River approaching. "Hi." I greet them, slightly casually.

"Hey, Mack," Jace says, the ghost of a smile appearing onto his lips. "So, we were kinda looking for you to see if you wanted to – ''

"Yes." I blurt out before I can stop myself. "And, listen, I'm really sorry for not… you know, _accepting _earlier, but I wanted to take care of Jordan…"

River nods. "She was a nice girl."

_She was a nice girl. _Is that all anyone thinks? Does anybody think of her as more than a bloodbath that was rather friendly? Because I do. I think of her as so, so much more… But unanswered questions, questions and progress, will always somehow speak louder than me.

**District Five**

**Jace Leighton's POV**

"…Well, I got used to it. It was miserable for a year, but I decided to suck it up. They were people all around me… all over that town. Even without the pressure and anxiety, I still didn't talk to them. It… it's difficult to understand." Viktor says, ending his life story rather bluntly. River nods sympathetically, whereas Mack seems fascinating by the plain dirt underneath our shuffling feet.

"What about you, Jace?"

Almost like a reflex, I reply, "Nothing."

River is about to question me again when Viktor laughs wholeheartedly. "Doesn't look like we're getting anything out of him today, River." He says, half-smiling at me.

While River and Viktor laugh hysterically, Mack drops his voice to a whisper. "Are they always like this?"

I am about to respond when I see the faint outline of another ride. We have only seen one so far; a slingshot-ish thing. It didn't look very safe, with thin strings being the only support for two people.

"What's that?" I turn to glance at River, who stares at the long, slinky outline of the… thing.

"I'm not sure. Let's go find out, I suppose." I say, leading my allies towards the figure. Mack follows right behind me while River and Viktor slowly tag along, whispering to each other the entire way there. I don't know how they get along so well and talk so much when they're both relatively quiet people. Me, I'm quiet all the time. My thoughts float around my head until some sharp objects pops them like a balloon.

After about twenty minutes, we are standing, frozen, in front of a massive ride. It has tracks like a train, though a colorful car rests inside a shack of some sort.

"A rollercoaster." Mack is the first to speak up. "That's what it is."

Once he utters the practically foreign word, I remember learning about those rather unsafe sources of amusement in history class. It's strange to think that humans, just like us, went on these death traps for fun…

"Can we look around it?" River asks, staring at the _thing _with adoring eyes.

"Oh, sure," I mutter, grabbing a blade from River before walking off, rather happy to get some alone-time. Though I don't particularly dislike any of my allies, I still need my daily minutes of peace and silence. The greatest tragedies lie in the silence, though the end of an awful storm lies in it as well.

I bury myself deep into the rollercoaster tracks, the intensity of it all so real. My senses flare when I hear the pang of flesh against metal. Instinctively, I narrow my eyes to enhance my vision and slowly turn around, not catching sight of anything or anyone.

"Show yourself." That's odd. I sound a lot braver on the outside than I feel on the inside.

My body stiffens once Stone Walcott quietly steps into view. He smirks once he sees me, as I am smaller than him and a bit scrawnier. He doesn't seem worried at all. "You're the guy from Five… right?" Stone asks, tilting his head to the side curiously. I nod curtly, quite aware that his name is Stone and he is the male from District Two.

"What brings you to these parts of the arena?" Stone asks casually, tapping the tracks. I narrow my eyes.

"Get to the point," I snap. Stone fixes his eyes on me, laughing a bit.

"You're different, I suppose. You're much different than your district partner… poor wittle Solstice." Stone says this mockingly, cackling afterwards.

The puzzle pieces mend together. "You killed Solstice?"

"Yeah, I did. You got a problem wi – '' My blade is buried into his throat before he can finish his snotty sentence, the blood spurting out in different directions.

All I can do is watch in a cold shock of what just happened. Once the cannon booms, my thought is clear.

_That was for you, Solstice._

**District Nine**

**Lace Chandler's POV**

I am fully aware that the sun is setting, it is the second day of the Games, and I am alone.

I tripped while running behind Arlin, and I suppose I knocked myself out. Somebody carried me. I don't have the slightest clue who but if I ever find out, I will owe them greatly…

My footsteps are nimble and practically silent, to my relief. I lean against the cool surface of the pearly white horse, which isn't real, of course. It is simply a part of the carousel I'm in.

The arena was easy, seeing as I was dropped off in the carousel. My mother always loved telling me about the times before Panem, and as a child I was very interested in the idea of a place to go just for fun. It was strange how they were terrified of the rides, yet they still went on them time after time.

It made me happy when I first realized the arena was an amusement park. But after a rather long hour of thinking, I was scared stiff by the idea of how deadly the Gamemakers could make the amusement park.

People already died by accident on the rides… these times it will be on purpose.

I pet the horse, wishing it was real so I could feel the warmth of another creature. I wish I was anywhere but here, away from the people who want to burn the paper hearts of children…

My eyes widen in surprise when somebody grabs my hair.

They yank me down onto the ground and pin me there. I attempt to scream when I see that it's Max, but I am unable to.

Max seems to be thinking very hard, his hands tightening around my arms. I just watch, positive that I look like a frightened doe, with my wide eyes and such. I begin going over my will, hoping that my family will be able to know what I want them to have.

My mouth widens when Max loosens his grip on my wrists and stands up. "Go," he says, looking away. I slowly back away, one step at a time, not actually running until he screams, "Just go already!"

I run away. I run as fast as I can in the darkness, freezing when I hear the faint shouting of someone.

"Lace?"

**District Three**

**Amanda Leigh's POV**

Once upon a time, somebody ran. Somebody ran away singing, "Fast as I can!" They had to go. They had to go… They just wanted to feel okay being different. They didn't want their own mother to treat them like a disease. They just wanted to be _normal. _

They were a baby pit-bull butterfly, lost in the wind…

I've gotten off track again. I always get off track… I can't help it! It just happens!

Follow me down the rabbit hole! We can have a tea party with Alice and know that the best types of people are the crazy ones! Oh, but I have nobody to go with…

"Haiti, mon pays! Throw my ashesinto the sea!" I sing, only stopping once the bright kahuna of the Capitol shows up in the sky.

Underneath the moon, underneath the stars, here's a little heart for you! I would say it out loud, but I don't want Stone to hear. He's up in the sky now, fading off once my thought process drifts off. He was a naughty kitty cat! He was nice and fat. He had cocoa on his whiskers… naughty kitty cat!

I suppose I shall stretch for my dance competition tomorrow! I touch my toes with my hands. Ee!

"Amanda?" I turn around in the darkness, and put my hands on a person's face. Feeling his features, I gasp in surprise. "Toaster-Stroodle! You're back!"

"Unfortunately," Toaster-Stroodle mumbles before flashing me a bright smile. "Kaya died, and I don't want to be alone, so…"

"We're best friends forever; Gogo and me!" I shriek happily. Toaster-Stroodle puts his hand over my mouth, which I bite. "Oh, God, Amanda, you can't be so _loud_, okay?" he whispers patting his hand. I nod.

"What would it take for things to be quiet… quiet like the snow?" I whisper-sing.

"Oh dear God…" Toaster-Stroodle mutters as I continue singing.

"_Are we meant to be empty-handed_?!" I whisper-sing again, taking Toaster-Stroodle's hands and shaking them back and forth.

"Hey, did you know that some nights I stay up cashing in my bad luck?" I ask Toaster-Stroodle casually. He blinks once before getting a sympathetic look in his eyes.

"Amanda… do you have any idea what's going on right now?" he whispers.

I glance downwards. "Sorta…"

"Well, you see," Toaster-Stroodle says, "We're in a game called the Hunger Games. Twenty-four kids are picked for it every year. Twenty-three of them die, and eight of them already have."

My voice is dry as I except the grave situation. "Oh."

**Stone Walcott**

**Ah! I'm done with the second day of the Games!**

**Did any of you feel sad about Stone dying? I mean, almost everyone hated him after the blood-fest with Solstice so… XD**

**I started school. Ew, it's weird. My summer went by way too fast…**

**I don't want to get sued or anything, though I doubt I will, but alas, I must say the songs that Amanda sang in this chapter: Princess of China by Coldplay, The Undertaker by CocoRosie, Haiti by Arcade Fire, Don't Let Me Fall by Lenka, Louder Than Thunder by The Devil Wears Prada, and Some Nights by Fun.**

**If you go on the blog, there are new things like allies and such… just so you know…**

**Aaand I'm gonna start babbling soon. Okay, I hope you liked this chapter!**

**Review, my lovelies!**

**~Turn off your mind, relax, and float downstream. It is not dying, it is not dying~**

**Tomorrow Never Knows by Carla Azar and Allison Mosshart**


	12. Fix You

**Hello, my cellos. All of the characters that kind of died by default (having two characters or not reviewing) are dead now, so this chapter shall be a family-chapter!**

**I stole this idea from Rose Hunter (with permission :D) so yeah.**

**The song is Fix You by Coldplay, which is an **_**amazing **_**song. An amazingly amazing sad song.**

'**Tis time for writing!**

**Amanda's Mother, Laura Leigh's POV **

_When you try your best but you don't succeed_

An attempt is enough. I tried, didn't I? Again and again. I tried to fix her, but she was too… odd. Too strange. Too psychotic.

Everybody wants a perfect child. A child that has a face just like her mother's, and compliments you even when your face is red and your eyes are puffy. Whose drawings you can pin onto the cupboard as you make her breakfast and she thanks you politely. Not a child that can't remember your name, who you are, and kicks at you whenever you try to wake her.

All I can say is that I tried.

**Jordan's Friend, Jane Allivera's POV**

I was already nibbling down on my used-to-be fingernails during the countdown, scared stiff of the horrors that could be thrown onto my best friend. When Ayame caught her, I screamed. I screamed during the entire thing, which lasted thirty seconds at most, though it felt like a century. I used the voice she was too surprised to use.

Afterwards, I cried. I've been crying a lot in the past two days, and something tells me that I'm not quite done yet.

No, I won't be done for a very long time.

_When you get what you want_

_But not what you need_

I haven't gone outside the house since Jordan's death. Black chalk was layered onto my walls; I was in a half-asleep state when it happened. I'm not sure how I was tired if I couldn't sleep, but somehow I managed it.

I can't face those people who will pat my shoulder and tell me that they're sorry.

**Solstice's Cousin, Finn Hart's POV**

_When you feel so tired but you can't sleep_

She was distant, I'll admit. Sawyer bonded with her much more than I did, but for some reason I'm dealing with this much more harshly than he is.

Perhaps because her death was so horrible. I cringed every time it came onscreen, which was pretty often as the majority of the tributes were walking around talking about their life stories with allies.

Her ally… I feel bad for her. Mellow is so tiny; nobody in this district has any clue how she earned an eleven. Her love interest, or maybe they were just very good friends, sacrificed himself for her survival. I cannot imagine the guilt that must be flowing in her veins… Maybe, just maybe, they match the misery inside me.

**Baron's Sister, Valentino Kiol's POV**

My brother will win. I know he will, because he promised me he would. I laughed and told him I knew he would, and he just smiled. Daddy says that Baron loves me most, and I don't questions it because I know it's true.

I don't get why everyone's panicking. Just because the weakling girl died in the bloodbath doesn't mean we're completely hopeless; my _brother_ is in there.

_Stuck in reverse_

**Luciana's Brother, Lukas Sage's POV**

It pains me to know that there is absolutely nothing I can do. All I can do is watch, addictively, _obsessively_, and pray for Luci's survival, or at least a painless death. If she is given a death as torturous as the District Five girl's, I will surely break open.

_And the tears come streaming down your face_

My parents cry obsessively about their 'baby girl'. I hope that Luciana knows that, no matter how irritating they get, our mother and father _do _love her, very dearly.

**Stone's Neighbor, Marianna Richard's POV**

_When you lose something you can't replace_

I watched him. Every day, through the cracks in my walls or the slits in the blinds, I watched him walk outside for school, or to just take a walk around the neighborhood. I would rush outside and follow him, and trail behind as if I was walking alone and we just happened to be going the same place.

Nobody noticed me; nobody ever did. I suppose his eyes may have flickered towards me for a mere moment, but they would always drift back to other girls. They were brand-new dolls, and I was just an old photograph, whitened away after all the years. They wore nice silky clothes and I wore rags. They had bright smiles and pretty faces, and I could never compare to that.

I could never compare. I could never make him notice me until it was too late…

_When you love someone but it goes to waste_

**River's Mom, Delta Booe's POV**

My baby… I miss her terribly.

She's doing well so far, thank God. River killed a boy, but it was necessary. My baby can't do any wrong… she's _mine_.

No matter what happens, she will always be mine.

_Could it be worse?_

**Lace's Brother, Satin Chandler's POV**

_Lights will guide you home_

Lace is too young. She may be fifteen years old, and older than other tributes, but she's still too young. There will never be a time when I'm convinced that she is old enough to handle the rough seasons of her life.

I've been afraid of changing because I built my life around Lace. She was the air I breathed, she was all the little happy things in the world that made you smile.

When reality came around to blow me down, I held onto my older sister's hand as Lace would hold onto mine when we went into town. She was homeschooled; she didn't know anybody and was always nervous when I took her to the market with me, which wasn't very often.

People often wonder how I loved my sister so dearly if she couldn't even hold a conversation with me. They don't say it out loud, but I can see it in their eyes. I know that they won't understand, but the answer to that is: she didn't need to speak. It was all in her body language, the adoring sparkles in her eyes, that you could tell what she wanted to say.

**Viktor's Acquaintance, Malla Foreno's POV**

Name is Viktor; people described him as rude. The kinder ones defended him, stating that he was just shy or an anti-social person. The really smart kids would say that he was being purposely mean due to unresolved emotional trauma. Soon it would turn into a big argument, until Viktor stepped into the room, late as always, and everybody would go quiet.

_And ignite your bones_

He doesn't deserve to be in there; nobody does. Why must someone who's already had the worst of luck be doomed to die? Why can't a snobby rich girl get reaped, for once? I don't know why, but Fate seems to hate everyone.

**Bella's Sister, April Rue's POV**

I know why she did it, though I suppose that it could confuse some people on why she would volunteer for her _older _sister. But she knew that I was far too weak… I would have been a bloodbath for sure.

It's as if Bella was my only energy, my only hope. All the hope that once existed is clouded over to the point where I can barely see it anymore. My legs are like strings and I can't walk on them. I'm much paler than I've ever been before, and my breathing has been shallow for a few days now.

My parents are in the other room, and my younger brother Anthony is quietly watching me, his eyes wide. Suddenly, an overwhelming feeling of nausea washes over me, quickly being followed by sleepiness. I willingly close my eyes, smiling to myself until I realize that this is an entire different level of tired.

"April?" it's like I'm not in the room, like I'm underwater or being pulled away quickly. Anthony begins to panic; I can tell by the rapid breathing that I know isn't mine. "Mom, Dad, get over here!"

I don't fight it, I just accept it as it is offered to me. I silently bid my family goodbye, taking in the sweet air that will be my last breath.

"_April!_"

And I'm gone.

_And I will try_

_To fix you_

**Mack's Friend, Beverly Tei's POV**

An underdog; that's exactly what Mack is. He is a rather poor boy from District Ten that's never trained a day in his life; his entire situation seems to scream _underdog. _To the Capitol, at least. Whenever they show some of Mack up on the screen, that's what they call him.

_High up above or down below_

Though I've already lost Jordan, I'm glad that Mack still has a chance. A great one, at that. He's much different than most people; he's gone through a lot more in the last few years than most have in their lifetime.

And I know that's an advantage.

**Mellow's Mom, Fox Monack's POV**

_When you're too in love to let it go_

Mellow. She's… pretty mellow, actually. She tends to slink into the shadows and hide out until the very end. Then when someone comments on her sudden appearance, she says, with a laugh, "What? I was here the entire time."

I know that her ally's deaths have probably smacked her off of her feet for a while. I pray that she will be able to stand up once more and focus.

Everyone acts like she _must _be hiding something, like she must have some hidden killer instinct to earn herself an eleven. I simply ignore them; I know that my daughter got that score with her brilliant little mind.

**Ayame's Brother, Zane Wolfe's POV**

I didn't know Ayame very well. She typically spent her days laughing and playing around with Koda, and wasn't as social towards the rest of the family. She seems to loathe every moment she spent training as a child, and looked like she wanted to ask if she could play with her friends, judging by the way she longingly glancing out the window every few minutes.

My parents don't seem to feel an ounce of regret or sympathy. Instead, they're _ashamed. _They constantly rant on and on about how Ayame didn't deserve any of her training, didn't deserve a roof over her head, didn't deserve such a 'loving' and 'supportive' family.

It's hard to walk around District One now. Everyone stares at me, a few people laugh. I shoot them a glare that just seems to create an irritating smirk.

I miss Ayame, but I'm not sure what I miss. We exchanged murmured hellos to each other whenever we passed, but not anything else. It's like there's a void inside me that isn't replacing anything, just sucking up all the happiness inside. I should have tried to talk to her. I should have tried to bond with her. I should have…

_But if you never try, you'll never know _

_Just what you're worth_

**Arlin's Acquaintance, Mako Terre's POV**

I have a lot of friends. I have so many friends, in fact, that I am hardly ever lonely. Everybody knows me, and I know everyone. I get nearly thirty greetings everyday while I'm walking to school, and of course I respond because that is the polite thing to do.

I would always walk past Arlin's house on my rather long walk to school, with the blinds pulled all the way down and the aura around it being dark.

I always wanted to talk to him, but I wasn't used to talking to people on my own. People always came over to me and started chatting with me first, and then I'd gradually hang out with them more until we were friends. But with Arlin… he had no friends, and he didn't seem very interesting in finding a few. And now… he's too far gone to even try.

**Howl's Dad, Kronos Draconix's POV**

_Lights will guide you home_

My daughter is going to win the Hunger Games. It's in her blood. I have won and her brother has won, so now it's her turn. She already has a kill; the weakling girl from District One. Honestly, I don't know what the crowd saw in her. Yes, she was an _underdog_, but it isn't acceptable to be an underdog when you're a _Career_.

Now that Stone is dead, I suppose Howl will be assigned as the Career's leader. They need someone to guide them home, and my daughter is _very _efficient.

**Wyatt's Friend, Cadence Linker's POV**

Every time I close my eyes, all that I can hear is that awful snap.

It was loud, too. Wyatt has never been physically strong, so it must have been too hard for Riverann to break his neck. So simple, so easily executed, that it's almost as if there was never a person lying under that skin, even though there was. A friendly, forgiving boy that was nice to anybody he met, a sweet boy that sacrificed himself to save a girl that I suppose he loved.

_And ignite your bones_

He doesn't know what a song he sang. He doesn't know how much joy he brought. I just want Wyatt to know that even though he was a bloodbath and easily forgotten in the Capitol, every detail about him is etched into the minds of everyone in District Eight. _Forever._

**Willow's Mom, Springys Lockett's POV**

She's my angel.

Willow is my angel. Before she was reaped, I would watch her sleep until she woke up and then I would know that she was my angel, sleeping soundly inside her halo.

Maybe she doesn't know she loves me yet. Maybe all of her emotions haven't peeked out of their blankets yet. But I know that soon enough, Willow will know that she _does _love me and that she _does _have feelings.

All of Willow's life, I have been attempting to make her love me. She did, at first, but soon she… darkened. She never says thank you, but I _know _she wants to. She's probably just dealing with emotional trauma or something of the sort, since her father left us because she was being too 'difficult'.

Everyone whispers about her and I want to make them stop. I want to tell them what a blessing she is, how much I love her, so they will stop talking about my innocent, thirteen-year-old daughter in such hurtful ways.

_And I will try_

_To fix you_

**Ren's Brother, Cricket Hanapon's POV**

_Tears stream down your face_

_When you lose something you cannot replace_

It's silent inside my house, yet extremely loud inside my head.

I curse the day I was born. If I hadn't been born on Reaping day, I would have been able to volunteer for Ren and none of this would have happened. I like to think it would be as simple as that, but then I remember that if Ren hadn't been there to preoccupy the Careers, Luciana and Skandar would most likely both be dead.

When I visited Ren in the Justice Building, tears leaked down my face and I embraced him. Ren muttered something about messing up his hair, but hugged me back, and I could feel that his cheeks were wet.

There is now a hole inside of me, in the shape of Ren. Just saying his name aloud in the frost-killing air lays a heavy weight on top of my shoulders. The cold-cutting silence… is tearing me apart.

**Max's Sister, Emma Leo's POV**

A butterfly clings to my finger, seemingly settling onto it, before it flies away in quite a hurry.

_Tears stream down your face_

_And I…_

I thought that my brother was going to die. I was relieved when I saw that he was okay, but I still wonder… why did he kill that boy? I'm sure he has a good reason. He _always _has a reason… He was nearly put to death by those dagger-like glares. But instead there were loud cannons booming from the sky.

Suddenly, I am reminded of the butterfly that left the tip of my finger a few seconds ago. How they shimmer, how they glimmer…those butterflies.

**Kaya's Grandma, Zinnia Copper's POV**

I wish I could hold my Kaya once more, and finger-comb her dark hair out of her eyes so she can see better. Listen to her say a soft thank-you before quietly slipping back up to her room.

Kaya tried her best. This one time, her best wasn't enough. And it breaks my heart every time I have to think of it.

_Tears stream down your face_

_I promise you I will learn from my mistakes_

**Jace's Friend, Hugh Beline's POV**

_Tears stream down your face_

_And I…_

He's still going strong. It's funny how two days in the arena hardly changes him at all. He's still stone-silent, and tends to avoid talking about himself. The female population of the Capitol is fuming, because all of them were in love with Stone and now Jace has killed him.

Stone deserved it. In fact, he deserved _much _worse for what he did to Solstice. But for now, I will just have to hope Jace makes it out alive.

**Jax's Friend, Gear Pollen's POV**

"Honey, look at it this way! I mean, technically our marriage is saved!" my father chases after my mother, whom both go running out the front door.

I blink a few times before slowly going back to thinking. Jax is… different. He's very different, and changes moods a bit more suddenly than most people put up with. I was surprised when he allied with Amanda, because I thought that he… hated her? I don't know, she just seems like the kind of person he would dislike.

_Lights will guide you home_

_And ignite your bones_

No matter what, I will support Jax's decisions. He is my best friend, and wherever he goes and whatever he does… I'll support him through it.

**Skandar's Sister, Fairlee Dagwood's POV**

I love my brother. I love that he doesn't give up, no matter what happens, and I love that he never complains. But even though he has all of those fantastic traits in him… I know he can't win. Blind people can't operate very well on their own. My brother has amazing hearing, but sight is something very important in the Hunger Games. It's something you _need._

But no matter what happens, I will always love my brother. For who he is, not what he is. Because he's a real joy in life, a happy person that doesn't complain or whine. Everywhere he goes, he fixes people.

_And I will try_

_To fix you._

**Hee, this was fun to write! :)**

**I really love family-chapters, and I also really love this song… XD**

**Okay, guys, I am about to advertise a few stories. But I promise they're all amazing and you really should check them out! They are: The Kill by Rose Hunter, A Bloody Game by LoveIsBlindess, and Child's Play by JabberjayHeart.**

**I got my Hunger Games DVD, and I watched it last night! It was so beautiful :')**

**Also, I'm kind of iffy on the cover for this story. Do you guys think I should make a new one?**

**So… review? XD**

**~Tears stream down your face, I promise you I will learn from my mistakes~**

**Fix You by Coldplay**


	13. The Undertaker

**Ello gov'nas! **

**Today is day three of the Games! Gah, it's going by so fast! DX**

**Do y'all like the new cover? Personally, I like it much better than the last but I wanna hear your opinions…**

**The song for this chapter is The Undertaker by CocoRosie. **

**So, six POVs today. And I know that there are two characters (after this chapter) that haven't had a Games-POV yet, but I swear I'll have them next chapter!**

**Now I must write…**

**District Six**

**Viktor Blake's POV**

"_River." _

She doesn't stir, doesn't even move a muscle. She remains as if she didn't hear me.

Why can't I wake her up?

"_Riv _– ''

"She's asleep, Viktor," a quiet voice says, a tint of humor layered underneath the monotone. I turn to my right, and smile when I see Jace staring at me.

"I know…" I say, glancing at her. "But I need someone to talk to!"

"Why?" Jace asks, tilting his head curiously. I laugh a little, though startled by how… _social _he's being. Usually, Jace distinctly separates himself from River and me and silently thinks on his own, leaving Mack in an awkward position.

I shrug. "I don't really know, but I like talking to her. She's… a good listener."

To my surprise, Jace laughs a little. I've never really heard him laugh; he always has that serious, stony expression on his face. I was shocked when he said, blankly, that he had killed Stone. It didn't seem possible that Jace, a shy boy from District Five, could kill the monstrous eighteen-year-old Career from District Two.

My mind flashes to yesterday, when Jace simply refused to spill out even a detail of his past. I wonder… would be more _open _today? While he is in a good mood?

"Hey, Jace…" I say, starting off loudly but drifting off. "Yeah?" Jace glances up from fiddling with his shorts.

"What's your history?" I ask, and the question hangs in the air for a moment before I start talking again. "As in, what made you so reserved? What was your life like back home? What's your big sob story? Everyone seems to have one. Sorry if I'm being nosy… I just feel like I don't know you very well."

Jace blinks, blowing some hair out of his eyes before meeting my gaze. "A lot of people die, Viktor. It doesn't matter if you don't want them to die, and it doesn't matter if _they _don't want to die. They can run far away, as fast as they can, for as long as they want, but they'll still die. It's unavoidable."

I take it in, becoming a bit emotional over the depth of the words, before I realize he didn't even say anything about his life.

"Dude, you suck at story-telling!"

Jace cracks a smile. "Yeah, I know."

I smack him on the shoulder. "You really need to improve in that area, you know."

Jace simply shrugs his shoulders. "What's the point? Like I just said, it doesn't matter if we don't want to die, because it'll happen, one way or another."

**District Four**

**Isabella "Bella" Rue's POV**

"Why so silent?"

Baron's voice rings out, hovering around me for a few moments. I imagine that it's also hovering around Howl and Max, as they both seem to be in the same condition as me.

Something inside me is dead. I don't know what, I don't know why, but I feel like something has gone terribly wrong.

Howl was high-strung after Stone didn't return for a while, and broke once she saw his face in the sky. I thought I'd never see the day when Howl Draconix cried, but she spent the majority of last night curled up somewhere inside the maze of the rollercoaster tracks, sobbing. I'm not sure what's the matter with Max, but I suppose that if he wants to, he'll tell me.

Baron huffs angrily. "You're all _useless _right now. Come find me when you suck it up!" with that, he stomps off. I turn a bit to glance at Howl, and am very surprised when I see her seemingly ignorant, in a small ball shape with her hands wrapped tightly around her knees.

"Bella!" a hushed whisper says, in the voice of Max. I see him, still looking… troubled.

"Yes?" I say, trying to smiling but failing horribly.

Max's eyes turn to stare at me, though they're a bit glazed over. "I let her go. Lace." His voice is incredibly soft, and I highly doubt that Howl can hear us over her own trembling thoughts.

"_What_?" I spit out, thoroughly shocked once my mind processes this raw information. Max nods. "I let her go because… of Ren. It didn't feel good, Bella, it really didn't. He… he was just a _little kid_, and I killed him. Solely because… I wanted to…" his words spill out, floating off into space while he shuts his eyes.

I awkwardly pat Max's back a few times, before glancing up at the rollercoaster and suddenly getting a brilliant idea.

"Come on," I say, grabbing Max's hand and guiding him to liftoff point of the rollercoaster. He seems confused for a moment, before widening his eyes. "Bella, no."

"Why not? It will be… fun." Fun. The word feels foreign on my tongue, as I haven't done in a very long time. Max still doesn't look convinced, and I am about to open my mouth to tell him that humans _used _to enjoy it, when Howl speaks up.

"I'll go." Howl says quietly, nimbly stepping over to stand beside me. I grin at Max, giving him one last chance. He merely shakes his head, and I decide to just go on with Howl. Perhaps he will see me being happy, and some of the happiness will leap onto him.

I stare at the pad of buttons that seems to be connected to the ride for a moment. "It's self-operating, I think." Max says slowly. "Remember? We learned about that when we were eleven… They had to have people operate them manually for a long time, but near the end of North America and the beginning of Panem, technology started getting so advanced that they fixed them to operate by themselves."

"Oh, right." I murmur as I slide inside the right seat of the front. Howl hops in next to me, and buckles her seatbelts tightly, bringing her harness down. I do the same quickly. Max squints at the board, before pressing a button labeled _start_.

I squeal in surprise as the car starts being pulled upwards, sudden fear infiltrating my system as we reach the very top. It's strange, how terrifying this can feel, without being in any real danger at all. Howl and I both scream in an odd sense of excitement when we start rolling downhill at an unusually fast speed.

The happiness inside me turns a shade darker, and drifts into alarm, most likely because Howl and I's harnesses have just undone themselves. Howl grips onto the sides of the ride, screeching in tones of terror. I attempt to find a button, or some kind of way, to stop the ride, but my train of thought is cut short when the rollercoaster nears the ground and I'm flung out of the ride. I pass out right when I am thrown onto the solid dirt and hear the crack of my arm.

**District Three**

**Jax Hood's POV**

I am examining the ride in front of us, which has a small elevator-like compartment inside it that seems to reach the top of and then drop straight down.

"Stroodle of the Toast! Stroodle of the Toast! Stroodle of the Toast!" Amanda shrieks, using her new pet name for me. I reluctantly cast a smile at me, causing her to squeal even more loudly.

"What is it?" I ask her, sighing.

"Can you clone me?" Amanda sings, spinning around like a top. "I look like everyone you know now!"

"Amanda…"

"'Twas the night before Christmas!"

"Oh, God…"

Amanda focuses her intense eyes onto me. "Le gasp! Toaster-Stroodle, don't you be using those naughty swear words around me!"

"I wasn't using any fu – ''

"_No swear words_!"

I sigh.

"You've gone broke, squire." Amanda says, a much darker tone lacing her voice. "What are you talking about?" I question, and feel the impulse to laugh when she stops to think for a moment.

Amanda shrugs. "Double-u, double-u, double-u, dot, Toaster-Stroodle dot com!" she sings, in the merry tone of an annoying commercial.

"Amanda… you do know that my _real _name isn't Toaster-Stroodle… right?" I ask quietly, a bit nervous to hear her response to this question, that I can assure you most people don't have to ask.

She slowly turns her gaze to the ground. "Uh. Maybe…"

"Well, my name is Jax. Jax Hood. And you're Amanda Leigh." I say, with a weird little laugh at the end.

"Really?" Amanda's eyes are much wider than they should be, though I should know by now that Amanda's _never _like she should be.

"Really."

Amanda laughs cheerfully. The girl starts doing cartwheels away from me, and in a strange attempt to actually talk to her, I shuffle along after her. Once she's stopped doing cartwheels because of a 'disaster drill' I begin to make conversation. Or at least try to.

"So, Amanda," I say. "Why are you like… this?"

I've never been very good at talking to people.

"Like how I am now?" Amanda asks. I nod, and she continues. "My mommy said it's 'cause I'm sick. Sick in the head."

"Your _mother _said you were sick in the head?" I ask, a bit horrorstruck. "Yes," Amanda answers simply, flashing a bright smile at me. "Do you want to go play ring-around-the-rosie, Jax?"

**District Eight**

**Mellow Monack's POV**

Gentle on my feet, I silently step inside the House of Mirrors.

It's somewhat of a maze inside. I turn around corners and twists of nothing but mirrors until I reach a dead end, most likely signaling the end of the house.

I spin on my heel to head back out, but goose-bumps rise onto my arms and I freeze when I see my reflection. I look disoriented, with tangled hair in a sloppy ponytail and wild eyes. Carefully examining myself, I squint in displeasure when I see that I really do look like this.

Glancing down at my feet for a few moments, I shriek when I stare up at the mirror to see someone has joined me. Willow stands near the entrance of this small dead-end, her blonde hair somehow still in a tight ponytail and her skin still cleanly porcelain except for a dark bruise on her jaw.

Breathing heavily out of the terror pulsating through me, I begin to edge into a corner of the dead-end, opposite of Willow.

"You and I are awfully alike." Willow says quietly, smiling at me angelically before dropping it.

Through the numb horror of the situation, I shake my head violently. "You and I are _nothing _alike." I whisper, my voice weak from the very thought of being anything like her.

She narrows her eyes, but doesn't make any sort of move to attack. "You have a split personality of some sort, I think. Right now you're the pathetic, whiny Mellow that can't do anything for herself. Right now, you're a poor excuse of a person." Willow hisses at me, and tears begin peppering out my vision when I realize… she's right. I can't do anything for myself. I cry too much. I… am pathetic, just like Willow said.

"But when the _other _you takes over… you're strong. You don't care about what anyone thinks, you don't care about what anyone says. The other you is a winner; exactly the sort of person people _want _as a Victor."

"But that's not who I am." I say loudly, recovering from the mental wound Willow caused.

"That's the difference between you and me, honey." She flinches at the use of the word 'honey', but I continue nonetheless. "You're a spoiled-rotten, slightly sadistic, mean little girl. But – ''

"What's with the 'but'?" Willow interrupts angrily. "I don't think that's what you really are. I think something changed you. I think that if you really wanted to, you could be nice. You could stop wanting to hurt other people. You could stop being so _afraid_." My voice drops to an extremely quiet tone near the end, though Willow still hears me.

"I'm not afraid!" she screeches out, stepping away from me with her hands hovering over her stomach defensively. "I'm not afraid of anything!" Willow runs out of the mirror-house, leaving me to be with my reflections.

**District Seven**

**Skandar Dagwood's POV**

I'm startled when I wake up from my nap on my own. I asked Luciana to wake me up in an hour, and it doesn't feel much like day anymore. The warmth radiating off the sun is gone, and a cool breeze drifts through the air like it does every night in this hell.

"Luci?" I say, my voice a bit lower than a whisper. When I don't receive any response, I clear my throat and shout out, "Luciana?" It's a bit risky, as I have no idea where she might be and there could be someone near me that just heard that.

I don't receive any response, not even something scraping across the dirt or a pebble being thrown.

Then I hear a few quiet footsteps. "Luciana?" I say hopefully.

"Um, no." the voice is right beside me, and obviously a male's. I jump up a bit out of surprise, though calm myself back down quickly.

"Who are you?" I question, trying my best to keep a considerably friendly tone. The person hesitates a bit before answering, "I'm Arlin, from District Nine, and my district partner is here, too. You probably didn't hear her, though, because she can't talk."

"Really? Well, I can't see, so I suppose we're even." I say, a hint of humor hiding under my voice. Arlin almost laughs, I think, because there's a weird half-chuckle noise.

"So, uh, have you guys seen my district partner? Luciana?" I ask.

"No, sorry…" Arlin answers awkwardly. I sigh, momentarily defeated. "Then I'm afraid I've lost her."

"That's alright. Plenty of people lose things every single day, and the majority of the time, they find them again." Arlin says wisely. "Oh, wow, that sounds like something out of a poem book…" I mumble, before speaking louder so Arlin and Lace can actually hear me. "Thanks."

"You're welcome."

Arlin and I somehow silently agree to stick together for a while. _At least until I've found Luci…_

**District Two**

**Howl Draconix's POV**

I run away when things go wrong. Not always, but when I'm as shattered as I was… I can't afford to be there when I lose someone else. Stone's death killed me, then Baron ditched us, and then Bella fell off the rollercoaster and planted into the ground. I never heard a cannon, so I'm pretty sure that she's just gravely injured.

Stone… was the only one who understood me. There's only one other person in this arena that understands me the way he did, and I _need _to find her. I can't be alone again. I don't _want _to be alone again, because that's all I've ever been.

_Alone_… No, I won't let that happen.

My head is throbbing with pain, probably from crying all night, yet I still keep running.

I freeze when I hear a small voice say, "Howl?"

Grinning widely, I turn around to see a tiny figure that's barely taller than me. "Willow!"

Her lips curl upwards a bit, leading me to believe that's her way of smiling. "Don't be so _loud_, Howl."

I giggle nervously as I confirm that it's her. "Sorry, I'm just really happy."

Willow steps closer to me, so I can see the edges of her face, and the moonlight reflecting off her hair. "Why? 'Cause you found me?" she asks. It sounds pretty odd when she asks a question, because there's no trace of actual interest for the answer in her voice.

"Sort of," I say, smiling again. "I just don't want to be alone anymore."

Willow's face seems to soften a bit. "You're not alone. We are just alike."

I laugh, and nod in agreement. Willow continues. "The other tributes don't like us very much because we're different. Because we're stronger than them. Because… we can beat them, and they know it."

"Is that why Luciana doesn't like me?" I say, humming over it in my mind. "That, or maybe the fact that you've sworn to kill her." Willow says. I shrug. "That, too."

"Why did you choose her, by the way?" Willow questions. "She was the only person that looked as small as me. Even Ren would have been able to overpower me, but Luciana and I are even." I explain my logic. Willow nods blankly as I explain it.

"Also, it's okay if you ever feel alone. I don't really feel anything, but if I did, I think I would be lonely. Lonely and sad."

**Yay! I'm finally done with this chapter! Not that I don't like writing the chapters, but I was afraid I wouldn't finish on time.**

**No deaths today. Yay!**

**So, I have a question that I would love to see your answers to: if you could change one of the bloodbaths to make it so they survived, who would it be?**

**Also, what characters do you think are changing the most? **

**Anyhow, review, my ducklings!**

**~Characters of flaming eyes eager to burn the wooden castle. Eager to wreck the paper hearts of children birds~**

**The Undertaker by CocoRosie**


	14. Season of the Witch

**Holla, my coco-chollas! I am here with the fourth day of the Games!**

**So, the song for this chapter is the wonderful Season of the Witch by Donovan. **

**I actually don't have much to say, except that I love this song and this chapter is gonna have five POVs. Kay, writing time!**

**Day Four**

**District Nine**

**Arlin Tainte's POV**

Whenever I looked out my window, there were many sights to see. So many different people I would rather have been. It was strange… so strange…

I fade into reality quickly, and blink as my eyes readjust to the blinding brightness of the morning light. Soon all of me is wide-awake, so I turn to my right where Lace sleeps, her hair covering her face. I don't really know how her ponytail came undone so quickly, but I won't ask. She can't really answer, anyway.

Gently, I tap on her shoulder. Almost immediately, Lace bolts upright, staring at me with wide eyes until her train of thought adjusts to the situation.

Lace glances at Skandar, whom I suppose is still asleep. I'm not sure; his eyes are always closed so it will most likely be incredibly difficult to tell when he's awake and when he's asleep.

I must go out to find food. The last thing I had to eat was a bit of dried fruit yesterday morning, and I think it would be better to collect a lot of food now than find it little by little later on. But… how exactly will I go out to find food without harming my alliance? Leaving Lace, who can't speak, with Skandar, who can't see, would be a nightmare. But then if I take Lace with me and leave Skandar, someone could come to kill him and he wouldn't even be aware they were there. But if I leave Lace alone, she wouldn't be able to call for help. Besides, I simply cannot risk being separated from Lace… again.

I suppose the safest thing to do would be leaving them together.

"Lace, can you wake him up?" I ask. "I'm going to look for food." She stares up at me with her transfixing doe-like eyes, and gives a quick nod.

Carrying the long blade I grabbed from the very edge of the bloodbath, I give a little wave while walking off. I don't even know where to _look _for food… I've seen maybe one squirrel in this entire arena, and no other living thing – that I can eat.

I'm so lost in thought of where to find food, that I'm quite alarmed when someone runs into me.

The person is much shorter than me, and runs more into my chin than knocking my head. I study her features for a moment before realizing that it's the District Eight female; Mellow Monack. She's… insane, to be blunt. I don't think she's in her psychopathic stage at the moment, however.

Her terrified, startling green eyes land on my knife for a moment. Her already-round eyes somehow grow even larger, before she launches something at me and scurries off, giving me almost no time at all to react.

Confused, I look at the item she threw at me.

A small bag full of dried beef, with a twig tied around it to keep any from escaping.

**District One**

**Baron Kiol's POV**

"…I mean, what kind of Career gets a score as low as a seven? I feel ashamed to have _her _as a district partner, matter of fact. She was so stupid, so quiet, so use– ''

Luciana interrupts my ongoing rant. "Can you shut up someday soon?"

"Shut up!"

It's remarkable that she isn't crying, like most twelve-year-olds would do, though I'm far too stubborn to admit that. I captured her yesterday, while she and that blind buffoon were sleeping, and now I have her pinned to the wall of the carousel with mismatched seatbelts.

"You're so annoying." Luciana groans, hitting her head lightly against the wall.

"I know what you are, but what am I?"'

"That just proves my point."

My face flushes. I am _not _about to be back-sassed by a twelve-year-old girl.

She smirks, with an awfully big amount of confidence. "Don't be alarmed. I'm naturally a sass-master."

"Shut up!"

"Somebody's panties are in a twist."

I spin around angrily, roughly digging my nails into her arm once I'm facing her. "Shut up already, you little _bitch_! You're so _irritating_!" I shout at her, keeping my nails trailed into her flesh before snapping them out.

"Then why don't you just kill me?" Luciana snaps back, obviously trying to act fearless though I can see her legs trembling.

"Because, you ignorant imbecile, I'm keeping you for Howl. Whenever she comes back, anyway." I explain, for the fifth time.

Luciana raises an eyebrow, giving me a questionable look. "That doesn't have much logic to it, you know. What if Howl _never _comes back? She would brutally murder you if you killed me yourself, so there isn't really any point in keeping me around. You should let me go so I can return to – ''

"Howl will come back! And I'm not giving you back to your dumb blind friend!" I shriek at her, thoroughly shutting her up for the time being.

Her ice-cold eyes could probably be viewed as intimidating to some, though it would help if she wasn't so frail. Nonetheless, the midget manages to glare at me whilst looking slightly threatening. It is a sad attempt, but a bit impressive for being… her.

"Try again some other year – oh, wait, you can't because you will be _dead_." I snicker at my joke, narrowing my eyes at Luciana once I'm done.

"Hilarious, Baron," she scoffs, the right side of her lip tilting upwards in a pre-laughing state.

I simply ignore her, and decide that it will be much easier if I pretend she isn't there at all. I wish Howl would show up already; I am getting a bit weary of watching over this _peasant._

Sighing heavily, I sit down and lean my spine against the smooth surface of the carousel's wall, unfortunately plopping near Luciana. She doesn't comment on my new seating arrangement, and beings to stare off into the blue sky. I suppose she's thinking about the oh-so-tragic demise of her little _boyfriend_, the kid from Twelve. He had no chance, really. The incredibly young ones never do, especially when they have somebody as troubled as Max after them.

I creak my head over towards a flash of blonde, squinting my eyes in concentration. I see the whip again, and spy a small yellow-haired girl sprinting to a different ride, most likely.

I don't make any move to hunt her down; I cannot leave Luciana here. What if someone else comes and kills her? I'll be bid a failure for letting one get away…

As she slows down and I get a much clearer image of the girl's face, I confirm that it's Eleven. The rather eerie girl, whose name I can't seem to place. I laugh bitterly at the thought of her running amuck, wishing luck to anyone her has the misfortunate of crossing her path… Must be the season of the witch.

**District Eleven**

**Willow Lockett's POV**

I get wherever I'm going, and I receive whatever it is that I need. While my blood is still flowing, and I'm still breathing… I'm fine with myself.

Once I spotted Baron and Luciana staring at me, I expected an attack of some sort. I was ready to flee if Baron made any movements, but he didn't, which was incredibly out-of-character for such a bloodthirsty competitor. I decided he wasn't setting me up or anything of the sort, so I went on my way to the House of Mirrors, set on finding Mellow once again.

Howl would be ecstatic to hear that Baron has Luciana, most likely. I'm not entirely convinced that she is being herself, however, as she was… _different_ yesterday. Perhaps I miscalculated her exact personality; I don't know. I don't plan on returning to her. I won't kill her, because there isn't any need for that. I'll just see how she does on her own. I don't need her… _she _needs _me. _My 'outburst' yesterday was completely an act, to see how Howl responded to it. If she were really a valuable adversary, she would have seen through me and possibly plotted an assault, which I would have detected easily.

I always knew I would spend the majority of my time alone, that nobody would understand me. I always knew that something inside me was different, something set me apart from all those overly cheerful children.

Once I tenderly step inside the House of Mirrors, I narrow my eyes. There's something creepy in the air, something that doesn't settle right with me. Trouble is in the air, written all over the walls.

I am about to slink back outside and find a new hiding spot when a puffy hand grabs onto the collar of my shirt. I swat at the hand to no avail, and curse my fragile structure. Even if I am tough on the inside, my body is weak. It's irritating, when I should be so much stronger, but usually my meager size helps me.

Not today.

The thing overpowers me easily, wrapping its fingers around the collar of my shirt and dragging me. The House's lights flicker off, as if on cue, as I continue being dragged.

"Oh, crap," I murmur darkly, breathing in the utter graveness of my current position. There's no clear way out yet. For all I know, I could be being dragged to a room filled with water to drown me, or be thrown into flames that lick at my flesh until there isn't anything left but ashes.

As usual, I don't feel the fear that would no doubt be pulsating through anyone else. I don't feel angry at the thing, or even sadness. I don't feel anything at all, just the blankness that I am.

My future becomes slightly more fortunate once the light clicks back on. I instantly crane my head over to a mirror, and frown once I see what is pulling me. A clown, that seems to stand around six feet, with a snow-white face and messy red lipstick. It has on a sunny yellow suit and cartoon-like puffed gloves, along with large red shoes.

The clown seems unfazed by my newfound knowledge of its identity. I almost laugh at the stupidity of it, and quickly form an escape plan.

Smiling for the camera, I do a neat roll over my shoulder, nudging the clown with my foot and flipping onto my stomach, like a penguin. It continues to drag me, seemingly unaware that I have much more control now. I grip my icy fingers onto its ankle, yanking on it. The clown now seems to grasp the concept that I've partially escaped, and attempts to kick me. I've latched onto its ankle by now, and the try to kick me is a failure. It loses its balance in the floppy shoes, and falls onto a mirror, sending glass shards flying around the room. I duck, though one manages to bury itself into my left calf.

The pain isn't too bad, but it stings an awful lot. I yank the shard, which is the size of my pinky finger, out of my flesh and into the neck of the clown. Gritting my teeth, I limp out of the House of Mirrors as fast as I can carry myself.

**District Four**

**Max Leo's POV**

I hear a cry of pain, and crinkle my face in displeasure.

"Go to your happy place, Bella."

"It's kind of hard to find a happy place when you're about to die."

"You're not going to die!" I snap at her, whipping my head around to face her, and place my hand on her cheek to check her skin's temperature. Ice-cold.

Oh, crap.

"You feel my skin, now? Maybe it's because I've lost so much blood." Bella says, her breathing heavy. My eyes drift towards the bloody mess of her arm, before quickly setting themselves back to the ground. Her arm is so torn, and I am positive most of the bone is crushed.

I meet Bella's eyes. "I don't want you to die, Bella." My voice cracks.

"Neither do I, but it's inevitable."

The anger that's been balled up inside me for so long finally releases itself. "Maybe you could outlast the others. Maybe you could hide, or I could protect you, or – ''

"Max, you can't choose what stays alive and what dies. You can't control things. It's sad, I know, but many sad things happen in life. Some people are blessed to be happy for the majority of their lives, to be safe and sound in their home. To be protected. But others, like us, aren't as lucky. We just have to buckle ourselves into the ride that is life, and face the things that are thrown at us. We can't stop things, we have to accept them for what they are and what they will lead to."

"I'm not going to let you die!" I yell out, the words echoing around my head. Torturing me; ripping me apart.

I can just imagine what the districts must be thinking as they watch us.

_That boy needs therapy._

There is only silence for a pure moment. "I don't want to die like this," Bella starts, her gaze moving towards the heavily bleeding wreck of her arm. "I'll bleed out, and I don't want it to be like that. I just want it to be fast…"

I don't understand what she is hinting at for a few minutes, and she remains silent as I piece it together.

"No."

"Max, please."

"_No_."

"Don't you care about me? Don't you want me to die in a better way?"

I finally turn to her, a cool tear slipping down my cheek. "Just close your eyes." I mumble, before clearing my throat and repeating it.

I swallow the large lump caught in my throat once her grey eyes close until I can't see them any longer. Standing over the girl I've grown quite fond of, everything passes through my mind. The way she laughs, the way we talked, all the ways she's different, and special because of them. A sob escapes my mouth immediately after I bring the knife into her chest, and the thundering sound of her cannon fills my mind. The crimson splashes of blood coat the ground her corpse lies upon, along with a few droplets landing on my shirt.

**District Twelve**

**Riverann "River" Booe's POV**

"Can you think of anything else that sings?"

"Other than a human?" I ask, racking my mind for things that sing.

"Yes." Viktor replies calmly, patiently waiting for my response with a wide grin on his face.

I think for a moment before meeting his eyes with a bright smile. "A bird?"

"Yes, that's correct!" Viktor shouts out, clapping his hands for me as I laugh along. Jace hushes us, going onto a quiet irritated rant on how we cannot be so loud. Awkwardly, we both end up staring at the ground.

"You are all _so _strange, each in your own ways," Mack says, his words only a bit louder than whispers. "You know it!" I say, starting out loudly before remembering Jace's scolding and quieting down.

The anthem abruptly interrupts, blaring into every tribute's mind. I turn my focus to the sky, and am slightly shocked when I see Isabella Rue's face. She was a Career, or at least from a Career district, and I thought that she was going to last much longer than the fourth day.

I'm not very surprised to see that she was the only death today, since I only heard one cannon. Everybody in the alliance is pretty silent, blending in well with the twinkling quiet personality of the sky.

Mack awkwardly coughs into a cupped hand, his wide eyes wandering around at us a bit. I wonder about him sometimes; he's sort of like a fourth wheel. As far as I know, he hasn't really talked to Jace or Viktor, though he and Jace have some sort of bond, perhaps quiet people simply find each other that way? They walk with each other, neither knowing much at all about the other.

Quiet people are so very strange.

"Guys? I think maybe we should sleep now…" Jace mutters, his figure hardly visible at all in the dim moonlight.

I see Viktor shrug his shoulders. "I'll watch first, alright? When I start getting tired, I'll wake up you, River, and then when you get tired you switch with Jace, and so on and so forth."

We all nod numbly in agreement, overwhelmingly happy to be able to finally _sleep. _Even if there are murderers hiding out here, even if it _is _the season of the witch.

**Isabella Rue**

**Oh. My. Gabbersnack. Is this really two days early? Wow…**

**Anyhow, sorry to Bella's creator for killing her off, but it was chosen out of a hat… :(**

**So, do y'all have any predictions for deaths in the next few chapters? Any predictions for anything, at all?**

**Review, lovelies! **

**~You've got to pick up every stitch, the rabbits running in the ditch. Oh, no, must be the season of the witch~**

**Season of the Witch by Donovan**


	15. Neighborhood

**Hello! Here is the (cue dramatic music) FIFTH day of the Games! **

**Isn't it going by fast?**

**The song is Neighborhood #1 by Arcade Fire :)**

**Five POVs today! **

**Yeah…so, time for the actual chapter!**

**Day Five**

**District Eight**

**Mellow Monack's POV**

My stomach aches with hunger, the very same hunger that was about to be cured when I threw it away, to the boy from District Nine. Arlin, I think. He was very hungry, too, most likely, and I was just so _afraid…_

I'm afraid of everything, really.

I was afraid of liking Wyatt because I could hurt him, and look where that fear has gotten me. I know I should be completely over this by now, or at least have shoved it out of my thoughts, but I am weak and that is tremendously difficult; almost impossible for such a fearful girl like me.

_You don't have to be fearful._

I groan, before clamping my hands over my mouth in fear. I glance around, and once sure that nobody heard me, I sigh in relief.

_Yes, I do. It's who I am. _

_You don't have to be the you that you are now._

I narrow my eyes into slits, at _myself. _Or, this thing inside of me.

_I am not going to change who I am for stupid people doing stupid things throughout their stupid lives._

A bitter giggle. _Now, now, Mellow, you don't really think that, do you?_

_Yes._

_That's incorrect._

_Deal with it. _

If I had a small switch, to keep in my pockets and hold onto, for turning off this thing inside my head, right now would be one of the times I turned it off. Alas… I cannot. There is no true way for me to purify myself, to rid of this nuisance. I can't seem to shake it; it's like a shadow that creeps up onto me, sending violent shivers down my spine and forcing me to be so paranoid about what I've done to others.

_You cannot shake me because I am you. We are one. I am a part of you, and I always have been. You may not like it, but it's the truth. _

The same helpless feeling that I felt with Willow overrides me. I take deep breathes, blinking as I glance at my swaying surroundings. I reside in the surprisingly comfy compartment of a childlike replica of a rollercoaster, with happy little duck's faces on the fronts of the cars. My knees give out from under me, causing me to surely bruise my skinny legs.

_Not only am I you, but I'm much stronger than you. Everybody has a brave side and a cowardly side, and I just happen to be the braver one. Mentally, I mean. Every word Willow said was correct; she's an exceptionally intelligent girl. You are a coward!_

An exact repeat of what has happened to me so many times before. What happened with Wyatt, why we grew together in the first place… I pass out as soon as I hit the ground.

**District Three**

**Amanda Leigh's POV**

"Amanda, would you mind getting some berries just like these?" Jax asks me, tossing a few dark red balls of fire into the palm of my hand. I squeal at first, before realizing the shocking truth that they _aren't on fire._

"Jax, what is the meaning of this madness?" I demand angrily, staring up at him with the bewilderment in my voice clear. "Balls of fire should be hot and scalding and such, not… neutral! Why are you giving me neutral things? I'm not neutral! I'm not normal! Normal is boring! What are you trying to say?!"

Jax combs a couple of blonde strands from his face, before glancing at me. "What?"

What were we talking about again? I'm not sure. "And we're stunting like Gucci Gucci, Louie Louie, Fendi Fendi, Prada!" I sing, the harmonious beauty of my amazing talent shining through the simple words.

My BFFL, Jax, sighs. "I'll go get them myself, alright? Stay here." He says, plucking the berries out of my hands and walking off.

Oh, why did he leave me? I'm so alone now! Sadness and hurt fills up my system, and a lump forms in my throat. Why doesn't Jax love me anymore? I thought we were going to be best friends forever! One thing is for sure… "We are never ever ever ever getting back together!"

Tears start to pepper at my vision, creating ugly blurry spots in the world. I groan at the irritation, and start to whip my hair back and forth in order to get the salty jazz out of my eyes.

Hm, perhaps I should go look for Jax? When I said we were never ever getting back together, I didn't really mean it! I hope he didn't take it personally!

I begin to race towards an unclear or set direction, when I see someone that has almost no resemblance to Jax. He must have put on a disguise to make sure I _never _found him!

"Jax!" I shriek, pouncing upon him. He makes strange, scared noises, and I tilt my head, confused, before I register that it doesn't sound like Jax at all. Glancing at the person's face, I gasp. It's the bus from District Six, whom I saw at the Chariots! "Bus, it's you!" I shout out, smiling to myself.

Then, a sharp… _pain _fills my stomach. I fall over, hardly feeling my head hitting the dirt. The bus stands there, in silent shock for a moment, before dashing away from me. I stare down at my stomach, unable to tear my gaze away from the sharp stick – a _spear_ – protruding from my flesh. Footsteps crumble in front of me, and I whip my head upwards to see Jax.

"Amanda…" he mutters, his eyes crinkling in horror. "Bye-bye," I murmur, closing my eyes with one last smile; the spear is in far too deep for me to live much longer. I numbly feel Jax's hand squeeze my arm softly. My cannon sounds and then… I die.

**District Seven**

**Luciana Sage's POV**

I let out a small shriek when I feel something crawling onto my shoulder. Baron immediately whacks it onto the ground, slightly bruising my shoulder in the process, though I can't help but feel grateful.

"Thank you," I say, smirking at Baron. I _am _doing this to irritate him, but there's a grain of honesty in my words. Baron rolls his eyes, so I continue on.

"So, are we allies now?"

Baron twists around to me, a furious expression on his pale face. "No! We are not allies, we are not friends, and I don't like you! I hate you!"

I snicker quietly at his explosion, and hide my grin when he roughly forces my chin up. "You are doing this to mock me, aren't you?" he grumbles, glaring at me. I am about to reply when a cannon sounds, and my heart drops.

"Perhaps it was..." Baron takes a moment to remember my ally's name, "Skandar?"

"Perhaps it was Howl." I snarl back, glaring back at him.

That shuts him up, but only for a few still minutes. Baron opens his mouth, and makes a small squeak, before stomping away to another corner of the carousel.

Once Baron is out of my line of sight, I begin to let worry flood over my thoughts. Skandar _could _be dead. That could have been his cannon. I am not even sure if he has awaken, let alone if anybody is looking after him.

I wonder how I was idiotic enough to let someone kidnap me? Not kidnap, more like… capture. I am just a toy in this complex game, and I don't like it much.

I straighten my body considerably when I hear a shout of pure agony, and a chill runs into my veins. Another shout… that sounds as if it is coming from right around the corner.

Baron.

I bite down onto my lower lip, hard enough to draw a small drip of blood. I instantly stop at the first taste of blood, abashedly glancing around. The cameras are most likely focused on whatever is going on with Baron, as the screams continue on. I almost feel sympathy for him, though I cannot muster enough of it to establish it as an actual feeling.

For what seems like nearly twenty minutes, the painful sounds go on. I cringe at every disgusting, mushy noise and every ripping of soft flesh, which is quiet often indeed. I shut my eyes when blood splatters to the ground, hearing a _whip_-like noise.

And then it stops; suddenly.

My chin trembles as I slowly open my eyes, fright taking a rather long course through my body. I twitch when I hear the booming of a cannon, because I know that it is Baron's. And whatever killed him so gruesomely… is most likely after me now, since it's so convenient. One victim after another…

I watch as a very small figure appears in front of me. Not nearly as small as me, yet still pretty short. Their back is turned to me, with a thin bodily structure and gingery red hair in a loose ponytail.

The person twists around, giving me a clear view of her. Delicate features, and startling eyes… _Mellow. _She must have done her strange personality switch, and murdered Baron. Yes, that must be it, judging by the deep splotches of blood threaded into her clothing and a few streaks on her neck. Mellow gives me a long, haunting stare before passing out onto the ground, Baron's blood seeping into the dirt. She… is truly alarming.

**District Two**

**Howl Draconix's POV**

I'm alone now.

The cold silence nibbles on my flesh, leaving me even more hopeless than I already was.

Why did Willow leave me? I'm lost now. I was lost before, with _her_, I suppose. I would have found out about her one way or another; like this or turning around only to find a knife in my chest.

I can see her clearly now, since all of the mist has drifted from my eyes. She's sick, really. I thought it was impressive that she did not have emotions… I admiredher for it! I thought she had cleanly trained herself to avoid feeling, to be stone-cold, but now I see that she naturally adjusted herself that way; it wasn't a choice.

Now I can see why all of the Career districts form a pack. Simply to not be _alone_.

It's so strange, how I have trained my entire life for this, yet I cannot seem to lift myself out of this depression and actually play the game. It's… sad. I am not yet able to showcase my talent. My parents must be angry with me…

Jumping at a loud noise, I sigh once I realize that it was only a cannon. But, who was the cannon for?

I don't have much time to decipher this, as I hear a heavy stampede of footsteps seeming to be heading towards me. I am a bit startled by this, but a wave of relief splashes me once I'm aware of the large square-like building right near me. I run inside, my small feet making light _tap _sounds on the pitch-black floor. I can see my reflection in the mirrors, which make up the walls. A House of Mirrors, I guess this is supposed to be.

The flickering lights layering the ceiling are enough to give me small goose-bumps, but I screech in sudden fear once sparks fly off one light, slightly lighting up the dim room. More sparks drift around the air, until all of the lights abruptly switch off.

Something begins to grab at my ankles; my screams echo around the walls, surrounding me as I am tugged along.

**District Ten**

**Mackenzie "Mack" Taner's POV**

Jace and I walk along the darker dirt path, both equally as awkwardly silent as the other as we search for berries. It's alright, in a way, because we are both equal this way. Neither are too outgoing for the other's taste; it is the same sort of thing with River and Viktor, with them having such similar personalities.

"So," Jace says nervously, softly thumping his feet against each other.

"So…" I mutter, in a reply of sorts. "What was she like?" I almost knock myself upside the head for asking that.

"Who?"

"Solstice."

Jace blinks once, his mind adjusting to the new filter of this conversation. "Solstice… was sweet. Scared, really scared, but nice nonetheless. I didn't talk to her much, since she couldn't speak, but she seemed incredibly… innocent." I don't respond, but Jace keeps going on. "Stone killed her, you know. Because he _reserved _her." His pale hands are balled up into fists at his sides, and his jaw is tighter than it seemed to be before.

"I'm sorry." The words come out before I can register them well enough, but it doesn't really matter much since Jace doesn't reply.

After a strangely long period of silence, Jace speaks up. "What about Jordan? What was she like?" his words are curious, but just slightly. Jace tends to not show too much emotion.

"She was really nice, and she didn't like to yell. Or even raise her voice at all. She was kind to everyone she met, everyone she talked to." I say in a rush, willing to get all of the words out.

Jace takes a few moments to process it, then nods his head a bit.

I freeze instinctively when I hear a loud noise, sounding like someone's shoe scraping up against metal. I am sure it wasn't Jace or me, seeing as the noise came from behind us.

I turn around, and I suppose Jace is doing the same. I am quite irritated when I see, once _again_, a smiling Willow Lockett.

"A wild Willow appears," I mumble, taking a step towards her. She still has a rather large bruise on her angled chin, from the last time we met up. To be honest… Willow scares me. I know that I could kill her easily, but she's simply a child. A spoiled, slightly-evil child, but still a child.

"So we meet again." Willow says, her expression alarmingly plain. It's always quite startling to even look at her, a young face with absolutely no trace of emotion. It's like knowing every answer to every question, yet you don't have enough energy to force the pen to meet the paper and write down all the things going on inside your strange mind.

"You were stalking me!" I stutter, somehow turned defensive by Willow. "You were following us!"

"And?"

I groan.

"_Willow._" A stern voice hisses, causing me to glance over at Jace in surprise.

Willow narrows her eyes, therefore glaring at my ally, but doesn't say anything. Jace glares at her back, and takes a sudden step forth. Willow runs into him, knocking Jace over effectively. My mind takes a full minute to register these images before sending the proper signals to help Jace. The two are kicking and clawing at each other while rolling on the ground, and by the time I've caught up to them, Willow's fingers are wrapped loosely around Jace's neck and Jace has a knife held steadily at her throat.

"Jace?" I let the word hang in the air, and Jace stares over at me. Glancing down at the thirteen-year-old pinned underneath him, Jace looks quite conflicted. Willow makes no move to strangle him, her face looking as if it's frozen in time.

"You aren't worth it," Jace snarls at Willow, releasing her. She rolls her eyes at him, before running off into the darkness, again. All she does is run away… I wonder what will happen to her when there's nowhere left to hide?

I stare up at the sky once I hear the blaring of the anthem, awaiting the deaths today. I heard two cannons, so naturally I expect two faces.

I'm shocked by the death of the District One boy, Baron. He was so vicious, so bloodthirsty… it seemed impossible for him to die before at least the final ten. The other death, Amanda Leigh, isn't as much as a surprise since she was so mentally unstable. In an odd way, I will miss her.

Is it possible to miss somebody you barely knew at all?

**Amanda Leigh**

**Baron Kiol**

**Omigosh, all the feels! So sorry to Amanda and Baron's creators; I truly loved them both. Amanda was the most well-liked character out of everybody, so I'm guessing a lot of you are going to be quite sad about her death.**

**I barely got this up on time. Guys, I think that next week I'm going to have to update on Friday instead of Thursday, therefore changing the deadline to Friday. It's extremely hard to meet a Thursday deadline, with school and everything.**

**Can you believe almost half of the tributes are already dead?**

**Who are all your favorite characters right now? Who do you want to die? **

**Review! :)**

**~You change all the lead, sleeping in my head. As the day grows dim, I hear you sing a golden hymn~**

**Neighborhood #1 by Arcade Fire**


	16. Dark Paradise

**Ello, young chihuahuas. Can you believe we're already on Day Six? 'Cause I can't...**

**Oh my turtle, I have over 150 reviews! This is truly amazing; thank you all so much!**

**So, the song for Chapter 16 (wow…) is Dark Paradise by Lana Del Rey!**

**Five POVs today, y'all! And only one of them is a girl's. Isn't that sad? The female race is being outnumbered! This is an outrage! Okay, I'm seriously rambling now. Onto the actual writing!**

**Day Six**

**District Three**

**Jax Hood's POV**

I remember all the little things, that might count as big things to some people. Or, perhaps medium-sized things? Is that even possible? _Is_ there any in-between?

Anyway, I remember small things about Amanda. Nothing about her was shallow, or unnoticeable at all, but I suppose that when you're her ally you get used to it. Even allow yourself to be comforted by it at times.

The memory of Amanda saying her mother called her _sick… _causes me to feel nauseous. What sort of mother says that to a child? I've been silently debating whose parents are worse, mine or Amanda's? It's a tough question that I most likely will not be able to answer until I personally meet Amanda's mother, which I don't think I will.

I sit against the drop-tower, which I have been residing by for a few days now. I found some berries in the bottom of the shaft, since the tower seems to be pretending to be an elevator.

Timidly, I step into the awkwardly shaped ride. I instantly deem it unsafe, or at least by the look of it. I suppose it's possible that they created it to look old and dangerous, to psych riders out before it even started? I glance upwards at the darkness above, which supposedly holds a ceiling somewhere inside the eerie nothingness.

Have you ever felt fear for no clear reason, at all? Your heart beats and your palms grow clammy, though you cannot seem to find the reasoning behind it?

I spin around on my heel, heading towards the exit of this unsettling area, when the gate-like cage surrounding the ride latches shut. My heart beats in my head, causing me to narrow my eyes in discomfort.

_It's the Hunger Games… _I remind myself to keep from panicking too severely. _Things are supposed to blow up in your face and go boom._

Rushing to the sides of the now-closed elevator, I grab a scrap out of my pocket and attempt to pry open the door. It's stiff, and obviously sealed shut. After I have been working at it for about ten minutes, I groan and try to think of a new plan, which doesn't work very well. First off, what have they trapped me in here with…?

No hisses or growls emerge, so after a few minutes I bid this place safe. For the time being, at least. Grasping my long blade tightly, I hold it close to my body, a bit defensive. I need to be prepared for whatever is thrown at me. Yet, a piece doesn't seem to fit in the puzzle; why the Gamemakers would keep me locked in a room without anything that could harm me?

**District Seven**

**Skandar Dagwood's POV**

Arlin has left to find more berries, saying that Lace and I took care of each other well last time.

Really, it's just awkward.

My terrible attempts at conversation failed horribly last time, and I still haven't decided if I should try again. She's a _nice _girl, I know, but she can't reply to anything I say, and that creates a bit of awkwardness in the air.

"So… um, I know that you can't talk and all, but at least I can talk to you…?"  
the way I say it forms it into a question.

Nothing but quiet, of course. I silently plead for some sign that she's actually there, really listening to me. I don't want to feel alone. I don't think that people often notice that other than what I hear, I am not aware of much.

Nervously, I continue on. "I'd just like to thank you – and Arlin, of course – for taking me in when Luci, uh, disappeared. I mean, we still don't know where she is and everything but it's fine. I'm sure she's fine…" my babbling turns into mumbles, and my face flushes red.

A timid hand shakily pats my shoulder, in an attempt to be comforting. I appreciate it, though it's a rather sad attempt. "Thank you, Lace." A little bit of a giggle is the response I receive.

"Hey!" a loud voice booms out, and I turn towards it. I recognize it as Arlin, and am relieved to know I'm right when his rare laugh rings out. I've heard it once before, when he was talking to Lace about something. I was half-asleep at the time, so I don't remember much of what he was saying, though I do know that it made him _laugh._

"I found something!" Arlin says happily, and I'm overly shocked that his voice isn't as monotonous as average.

"What is it?" I ask, curiously blinking my eyes a few times. It doesn't do much good, obviously, but it feels strange keeping your eyes closed at all times. I don't like to freak people out with my eyes, since my mother has told me that people squirm at the sight of them.

My heart stops when I hear a familiar scoff, stern yet playful. "I'm not a thing!"

"Luciana?" I say shrilly, my voice much higher-pitched than usual. I listen very closely, and a smile splits across my face when gentle footsteps tap over to me. "Yes," goes Luci's voice, and then a happy laugh.

I reach out for her, grabbing her hair by accident, but still pulling her towards me and wrapping her in a hug. "Where did you go? Why didn't you tell me? I missed you so much! I thought you were hurt! Or being killed slowly!" I shout out all at once, not very impatient for an answer.

"I'll tell you when we have more time," Luciana says. "But for now, we should probably run. I mean, there's a psychopathic girl with a knife after us."

**District Five**

**Jace Leighton's POV**

I sit, bundled up comfortably against the steps leading up to the Ferris wheel, which River and Viktor examine while Mack nervously paces around the large area with a frown upon his face.

I think of Willow, to be precise. She isn't evil, I think. She doesn't feel things, so there isn't really any _evil _that she's collected enough to be considered of that deadly rank. Willow is… a sociopath, if my knowledge is correct. I liked learning about psychological things when I was younger, and stored quite a few pounds of it in my brain that I still remember. I let her go because I'm above killing children, to be frank. Not her as a person, because she is _nothing _like a child, but just the fact that she's only thirteen.

Willow is intelligent; I can tell by how she seems to calculate everything. I'm not entirely sure why she repeatedly stalks, then runs away, but I _know _there's something buried beneath it. She isn't stupid enough to act without reason…

Viktor's sorrowful cry booms from above me, and I flinch at the sudden noise, for silence is my home. It welcomes me, and I fit quite snuggly into silence.

"I need quiet." I mutter, closing my eyes and focusing to find my quiet place.

Once again, I'm interrupted.

"Hello, Jace," Mack greets me softly, plopping down next to me with an exhausted expression. I wonder if he's tired… of this alliance? Of not fitting in very well. I'm alone, I suppose, but I'm content with it. I don't mind it much at all, and River and Viktor don't seem to notice.

I nod my head at Mack, as a sign that I've acknowledged his presence. He glances upwards, at the scene of River comforting Viktor… _still. _I believe Viktor has gone slightly insane since he murdered Amanda, but from what he has informed us of, it was a perfectly rational thing to do. She was sprinting towards him, he didn't know what she was doing, she was _insane_… It is quite logical.

"What do you think about Viktor?" Mack asks me, his voice dropping to a whisper at a rapid pace. He, once again, stares at the hysterical boy above us, before lowering his gaze to me.

"What's my take of it?" I repeat the question, though in a different set of words. Mack nods, patiently waiting for my response. "Well… he's gone a bit unstable. It's an entirely valid response to something as grave as death, and even turned a shade darker by the thought of ending another's life, unsure of what they did to deserve it. I think the thing that he is most bothered by is that he doesn't know if she was _going _to hurt him or not. The human mind – the average human mind – tends to only commit an act of violence if the person's health is in danger by the said person they are about to hurt."

Mack blinks his eyes a few times, attempting to grab hold of the words I just uttered. "So… he shouldn't feel bad, but he does…?"

"That's just a part of it."

**District Four**

**Max Leo's POV**

She said that it would be better, it would be less painful. I thought she was talking about both of us, as a _team_, it would be better. Now, after reevaluating everything carefully, I've come to the unfortunate conclusion that her predictions didn't have much to do with me.

"You purified…" I mumble, gazing off in the middle of my sentence and not finishing. I snap my head back up, and firmly grasp my knife again, "…_colors, _people, places, things… anything you could think of, really." I store the words into my cruel memory, carving them into the hard dirt. I'm still not sure why they have dirt instead of lively grass at an amusement park, but I suppose I will figure it out sometime soon.

I pause in mid-carve of the letter _T_, when a squeaky voice speaks up. "Hello, old friend."

I'm stunned for a moment by the familiar texture of the voice, before swallowing my fear. The voice continues on, seemingly stepping closer towards me. I stand up slowly, before spinning around quickly and slapping Howl across the face.

The palm of my hand's contact with her soft cheek sends the small girl back a bit, stumbling until she falls on her back. I study her for a moment, thoroughly surprised by the rather obvious damage that's been inflicted onto her porcelain skin. Dirt and bruises cover most of her body, and there are bloody, unclean cuts _all _over her legs and arms. There is one rather long cut on her arm that runs from her elbow to the start of her shoulder bone.

Howl sways slightly while standing back up on her small feet, before taking a deep breath to balance herself, and staring back at me. "Clowns…" she mutters, "Mutts, I mean."

"_Mutts_ attacked you?" I ask, an edge of disbelief in my voice. For a moment, I believe that it is far too early in the Games to have mutts after us, but then I suddenly realize that it's almost been an entire week; six days. Yet I haven't run into much of anybody, with the exception of Howl at this very moment.

She nods, her dark hair tumbling over her eyes carelessly. Howl reflexively adjusts her bangs to their former position, tucked behind her ears. The stylists seem to have cut her hair, however, because the bangs aren't long enough. Howl becomes agitated very quickly, and pulls a rubber band out of her backpack, which she ties her hair up with. After this odd event, the girl glances up at me, though I can hardly see her in the rapidly fading sundown.

"So, uh, why did you come over here?" I ask, staring at my feet. I have a theory; that Howl actually _has _changed in the time she spent away from the Career alliance. That, or she's a remarkably good actress and is faking it.

Howl blinks, swatting the hair out of her face again. "I w-was wondering if we could be allies… again. 'Cause, now that Bella and Baron are gone, I don't really want to be alone, and I don't think you do either. We're the only actual Careers left, I mean."

_We're the only actual Careers left. _She's right, in a different sort of way. I suppose Howl means the trained, specially-made Careers, which we both are.

And we're the only ones left, which means we'll have to stick together. For now, anyway.

**District Nine**

**Lace Chandler's POV**

"Congrats, we're all alive another day," Luciana says, sarcasm dripping off her words. Skandar grins at the girl's surprisingly mature humor, whereas Arlin stays still next to me, his warm hand wrapped around my frail one.

I smile to myself, not even attempting to laugh. I've tried far too many times, only to be disappointed again and again.

Luciana nibbles on one of the many berries we've collected, the very same kind that Mellow ever-so-kindly introduced us to. I have my own collection, in a little bag that I keep in my jacket's inner pocket, and I assume that Skandar and Arlin have done the same with their berries, in case they are ever stranded away from the rest.

Skandar and Luciana start talking about some random thing, and continue on and on with their pointless conversation, leaving Arlin and me in a rather awkward situation. He absentmindedly wavers a bit farther away from them, leaving us in our own space.

"So, Lace," Arlin says quietly, laughing a bit at the end. "We haven't really talked in a while."

I nod my head, smiling a little as I shift my gaze to the ground beneath us. I hear the lively squabbling of Luciana and Skandar a few feet away from us, now chatting about words that end with the letter _E._

"What are they _talking _about?" Arlin whispers, somewhat of an amused look in his dark eyes. They're interesting, Arlin's eyes. They're kind of wider than most, and look pitch-black. At times, in the broad daylight, they're more of a dark grey or brown, with tiny spots of black here and there.

I shrug my rather bony shoulders, my face breaking out into a beam. Arlin laughs happily at my apparent cheerfulness, holding onto my hand a bit tighter.

It's times like this I wish I could speak. I wish I could say all the words that float around in my head, seeming to have no reason to even be there at all. I can't say them; why do I have vocal cords at all? They don't work. They just_ taunt_ me.

"Lace, I just wanted to tell you – '' Arlin starts, his face setting into a serious expression when the Capitol's seal interrupts loudly. I cringe at the irritatingly booming noise, glancing up at the sky. Like I suspected, nobody died today.

Arlin opens his mouth, about to continue, when yet another voice interrupts.

"Well, look who we have here…"

**Aaand my pathetic attempt at a cliffhanger shows itself!**

**So, yeah, nobody died today. Gah, the Final Eight is approaching rapidly. Like, isn't that scary? (shivers) It scares me!**

**Sorry that this chapter is a bit shorter than others, but a **_**lot **_**is going down next chapter. So be patient, my wee little egg-sprouts :)**

**Not much to talk about this time around… oh wait! Who do you guys think the Final Eight are going to be? 'Cause, like I said, it's coming up pretty soon. **

**Review! **

**~Every time I close my eyes, it's like a dark paradise. No one compares to you, I'm scared that you won't be waiting on the other side~**

**Dark Paradise by Lana Del Rey**


	17. We Must Be Killers

**Yeah, so, Day Seven. Whoa, brosephs, this is getting… into the Games-y. Gosh, my intelligent vocabulary is just sooo amazing, it must scare you guys sometimes.**

**The song for this chapter is We Must Be Killers by Mikey Ekko :D**

**Uh… yeah, not much else to say. Oh, wait, this chapter will have six POVs! Yay, right?**

**Y'all are probably wanting to get to the chapter, so I'll start!**

**Day Seven**

**District Twelve**

**Riverann "River" Booe's POV**

They ran away; bolted the moment Jace spoke a word. He was trying to sound intimidating, I know, but it was a bit of a sad attempt. Nevertheless, I soon afterwards patted him on the back and muttered, "You tried," in his ear before sprinting off. I had to grab Viktor's arm, slowing me down a bit, but I could not just leave him.

I suppose they have hidden now. We were chasing them all night long, and we lost them at the Ferris wheel an hour or so ago. We have been walking circles around it since, trying to think up a new plan.

"I think they're hiding in there," Jace states, after watching the contraption carefully for the last twenty minutes. "There's movement. Very slight, but still _movement_."

"Where?" I ask, not too eagerly. It was a convenient, mutual decision that we go after the Seven and Nine alliance, that I didn't necessarily agree to. I'm still paranoid about Mellow Monack… I killed her boyfriend, or at least someone she really liked, and I haven't heard from her yet. I was trying to kill her, to get her out of the way for everyone else, until _he _interrupted…

Jace points a dirt-caked nail up at one of the lowest compartments, which I don't see any liveliness in. Though, I've learned by now that when Jace has a theory, it's right.

With a sigh, I reach over to the control panel of the rather monstrous ride. The directions drawn onto the panel are easy to grasp, however, and I smirk as I gently click onto a button which begins turning the Ferris wheel. I wait until the one Jace suspected is _near _the ground – not yet on it – and then pause the slow process.

"Jace and Mack, go get them," I command quietly, satisfied once the duo begin climbing up to the compartment. I dash over to Viktor, demanding that he stays put for the time being. He blankly nods, though I doubt he has any idea what I was saying.

I glance over at the compartment that Jace and Mack are climbing into, and my eyes expand considerably once I see that they are alone in there.

Jace was wrong, for once…

A flash of white-blond hair in one of the lower compartments immediately catches my eye, and I am there in a flash. I pry open the door easily, and stare down at the trembling figure of Lace Chandler, her hair falling over her knees. She holds her forehead to her knees, rocking herself back and forth, looking much similar to a terrified little animal.

"Hey…" I mumble, taking a step closer to the girl. Jerking her head up, she kicks at me, knocking my feet from under my body.

With a shriek, I'm falling for a moment before my fingers dig into the thin door of the compartment. With a grunt, I yank myself back up onto the compartment, stiffening my body to keep my feet from slipping as I stand up, my gaze now turned icy and directed at Lace.

I am about to snap something at her when a _creak _abruptly sounds, before the Ferris wheel begins to turn once again. My legs wobble as I slam the door shut, trapping Lace with me and also increasing the low rates of my survival on this terrible thing.

Now I don't have to worry about flying out the compartment and splattering on the ground. I shift my body towards Lace, a bit shaky.

_She_, on the other hand, has quite a few reasons to worry.

**District Nine**

**Arlin Tainte's POV**

"I thought amusement parks were a safe place," Luciana mutters angrily, her right hand balled up into a fist. Her other hand is grabbing onto Skandar's wrist, keeping him connected to her. She surveys the sight of Viktor sitting down, looking dead, and glances around wildly for any sight of Jace, River, or Mack.

It's peculiar how quickly they arrived, and we didn't notice them at all. Skandar has apologized numerous times for not hearing them, and whilst Luciana repeated again and again that it wasn't his fault, I was more focused on finding Lace.

I've lost her again, as it seems.

Biting down onto my chapped lips, I stand. I stay standing as Luciana stares at me curiously, and breathe a sigh of relief when the Ferris wheel stops turning. I carefully open the door of the compartment, my heartbeat turning rapid once I see that my compartment is almost at the very bottom. Encouraged, I face Luci and Skandar.

"Stay here," I order, before reevaluating my words. "Or don't. I'm going to go find Lace, and I don't know what you two want to do. Odds are, we won't see each other after this, so…"

I mentally curse my awkwardness, and am thoroughly stunned once Luciana tiptoes towards me. For a moment, I think she might shove me out of the compartment, but then she _hugs _me. I hug her back, with extreme awkwardness, until she lets go and takes her usual spot next to Skandar. They are a pair, those two. Kind of like Lace and me, but in a much more sibling sort of way.

Delicately, I attempt to plant my feet onto the compartment below me. I should have _known _it wasn't this easy… Hanging onto the compartment holding Skandar and Luciana, I'm able to reach the one below me, which also happens to be the one nearest to the ground.

I release my iron grip on my old allies, steadying myself on the last compartment. A bit worried, I glance over at Viktor, but immediately realize he's harmless in his current state.

He twitches a little, as if he is going to stand and _fight_, but my blade is buried deep into his forehead before he gets the chance. Viktor freezes, before the smooth stream of blood pours down his face, dribbling off his chin and falling onto his shirt. He falls over and I hear his cannon.

Remorse creeps up onto me, eating at my flesh for a moment before I shake it off. I must go find Lace, before I lose her again.

I shuffle along the dry grass for about five minutes, craning my neck to glance at the wheel every now and then. Turning my head for something around the eighth time, I pause at the rocking of one of the compartments. I know for a fact that Skandar and Luciana wouldn't be fighting, but I'm not so sure about anyone else.

I immediately rush back over towards the control panel, quickly forcing the wheel to start turning once again. Once the shaking compartment is back at the very bottom, I stop the turning and run over to the compartment, clawing open the doors. "Lace?" I say desperately, a victorious feeling rising up inside me once I spot my ally. She is kicking and scratching at the girl from District Twelve, River, whom is holding a handful of Lace's hair, causing Lace to stand up, painfully, most likely.

A smack upside the River girl's chin, and she spirals into the wall of the rather small compartment, certainly unbalanced. I take this time to grab Lace's hands, helping her back up, and leading her out the door.

"We must go _n_ – '' I start off in a rather hushed whisper, before something knocks into me and I land roughly on the ground. Agony, that I'm incredibly familiar with by now, in a soft spot near my heart. It's like that internal feeling you get when someone dies, or when all of the pain you've been holding onto suddenly bursts open and releases itself. Only this is real, actual pain _and_ the internal kind, both mixed together in some sort of sick torture.

Sure enough, when I glance downwards, there's a heavy arrow stuck deep inside my chest. I curse under my breath, not wanting what could possibly be my last words be cussing.

"Lace," I address my friend, watching sorrowfully as tears spring in her eyes. "I love you. As in, I love you more than I've ever loved anyone, and I love you more than I will ever love anyone. I love you like the night sky loves the moon and like the rain loves the clouds. I love you in a way that I don't believe anyone else could love you; that's how strong it is. I love you too much to describe correctly, because words aren't enough at all. It seems that I am on my deathbed at the moment, so I will speak what I wish to be my last words… I love you, Lace Chandler."

I'm a bit numbed in shock once tears spill over my cheeks. I don't think I have cried in years, much less over a girl. I don't regret anything I just said, seeing the emotions registering in Lace's eyes as my cannon sounds. My heart gives out its final beat, and then I leave this mad world.

**District Two**

**Howl Draconix's POV**

"Can't I go?" I whine, glancing at the battle far below longingly.

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"_Because_," Max starts, turning around to face me. "You're covered with bruises and cuts, and there a rather deep cut on your arm that only stopped bleeding, like, an hour ago."

"So?" I say, jumping a little at a sudden cannon. It angers me, though, how I'm missing everything.

"This is what I was made for! I've been trained for a day like this!" I hiss, and get an uneasy glare from Max, causing me to become even _more _angry. "That's my life going on out there! And I'm_ missing_ it!"

"Then go!" Max snaps abruptly, a fiery glint in his eyes. I don't move for a moment, before awkwardly beginning to stand up.

Max narrows his eyes, and then turns his head away from me with something of disgust. "You know why I let you in at all? Because I thought you changed. I thought you were different now! It turns out I'm _wrong._"

His words startle me, seeping through my skin and wrapping me up tightly. My thoughts turn foggy, but I roughly press the button to lower us. On the way down, I attempt to clear my mind. To no avail, really, but it _is _a try. I don't need to change. I shouldn't have allowed myself to become so hopelessly fragile in the first place. I'm right, and Max is the one that's wrong.

As soon as the swings reach the ground once again, I run towards all the commotion, leaving Max behind. I highly doubt he even wants to tag along, anyway.

I walk right past a sniffling Lace, who is staring teary-eyed at her district partner's dead body. It's a bit peculiar how they haven't collected him yet; there's no use for corpses at the moment.

I focus my vision at the first sight of that hair, smiling to myself as I sprint off in the northern direction. My legs are small, but I am fit and therefore run quicker than most. A memory floats into my head, of Stone and me being the first two at the Cornucopia. Willow arrived shortly after us, but I didn't find any need to hurt her, especially after our chat during Training.

Now, I wish I had mutilatedher beyond recognition.

"Hey!" I call out, grinning as the two turn their heads towards me, though one of them can't even see. With a snicker, I send my spear flying through the air, and hear a cry of distress. It's like an old lullaby from when I was a child; something I'm used to and something I can understand.

Luciana's eyes nearly fall out of her head, staring at Skandar. He says something to her, something I can't hear due to the distance, and she grasps his hand while he dies.

My spear landed right under his neck, drawing blood out into a stain on his shirt. The blind boy's cannon sounds, and I show up next to Luciana, breathing heavily, to see his cloudy eyes turn lifeless.

"Sorry for your loss," I sneer, beaming at Luciana. Her eyes turn from heavyhearted to frightened, and she begins to run off in the other direction. I scoff as I chase after her, _positive _that I can catch up to her in no time at all. "Run all you want, but I _will _catch up to you!"

**District Eight**

**Mellow Monack's POV**

Mack walks along the dirt-path, his eyes fearful and guilty. Jace walks beside him, with River trailing behind a bit, breathing loudly with her head held low.

"I killed him," Mack whispers, his glassy eyes staring out into the distance. He says nothing more, and it seems to unsettle Jace a bit. River seems unfazed by all of this, keeping herself in the same position with the exception of her hardly-walking legs.

"Try to forget." Jace instructs, though he doesn't seem to believe his own words. "Actually… don't. Accept it, don't just rot in your own guilt." I watch them as they walk away from the rollercoaster tracks in which I hide.

I'm not hiding from anyone, really. They should all be hiding from _me. _I am simply waiting in here, waiting for someone to be stupid and become my prey.

I have a much different line of thought than Mellow does. When I say Mellow, I mean it as in the dominant side of her. I am the side that hides in the shadows, sinking into them until I absolutely must come out again. It's a good thing when I come out, too, because without me Mellow would be dead. _I_ am what has strengthened her, after all. I was worried she would go and get herself killed, therefore killing me, so I threw some bravery onto her usual side, giving her what she needed to confuse Willow, even if it was only just a bit.

In these Games, this is the only time I have managed to grab hold of the actual body, the only time I've been able to fully take control. It's been a rather long time so far, too; almost two days. I expect the weak Mellow to be coming back soon, however, if she's done crying over Wyatt by now.

As much as Mellow would _love _to deny this, I remember Wyatt, too. Only a little, though. I remember his smile, which was bright and forgiving, and that he had extremely hopeful eyes.

Unlike me, Mellow doesn't have a problem lying to herself. I_ am_ her, I wish she would suck it up and accept that fact already, but an entirely different part. We don't think the same at all. We're like two different people, except… not. It's strange, and I doubt anyone could explain it correctly.

All of a sudden, I get an annoyingly nauseous feeling in the pit of my stomach. I'm quite familiar with this by now, and know that it's the regular Mellow preparing to retake control.

"You ruin all my fun," I mutter under my breath, hoping that Mellow heard me. She isn't strong enough to be a little voice in my head; only I have the power to do that.

With a sigh, I begin making my way through the tracks, now eager to find the alliance of Jace, Mack, and River. It seems that I'm going to be kicked out of this body and back into Mellow's head soon, and I simply cannot go away without killing one more time. I _wanted _to get someone from the Seven and Nine alliance yesterday, after Luciana joined them again, but gave up after they'd ran too far.

And let me tell you, I don't give up very easily. Unlike the regular Mellow, who cries and hides away once something gets too hard. She doesn't defend herself; she can't do anything on her own.

After I'm done mentally tearing down my other half, I begin down a trail.

**District Seven**

**Luciana Sage's POV**

I keep my breathing shallow, not caring much about the nervously low amount of air I'm actually getting into my lungs. Tears stain my cheeks, though I try to stop the flow from my cramped hiding spot in a small, little-kid-rollercoaster car, tinted eerily by the dimming sundown. The cars are ducks, and it unsettles me greatly anytime I look at one.

"Hullo?" a harsh voice says, sending a shiver down my spine. Howl, of course.

I stay still, cutting off all breathing. My lungs start to ache from lack of oxygen, but I don't give in. I can_not _risk Howl finding me.

"I know you're here," Howl says, laughing bitterly at the end of her careful words. "I'm not stupid. You aren't breathing, I suppose, but I can tell when someone is right around the corner…" she pauses. "You're hiding, huh? _Coward_." She's trying to cheat me into speaking up for myself, clearly.

"Show yourself!" Howl barks out furiously. I can hear her stomping around on the ground, obviously irritated by my resistance. I almost giggle, but stop myself before a sound releases itself.

And then, there's an intensely sharp pain in my shoulder.

Quickly, I yank the tiny knife out of my shoulder, dripping blood all over my hands, and twist around to glare at Howl. The girl laughs bitterly, shifting into a weak fighting stance. I grind my teeth together as I try to numb out the pain in my shoulder, keeping the knife grasped into my left hand for safe-keeping.

"Come on, Luci," Howl snickers. "Don't you want to fight?"

"No." I say, loud and clear in the ever-growing silence. Howl raises an eyebrow at this, though cockily. "Why ever not? Haven't you accepted that you're going to die yet?" she asks, a little bit of taunting in her cold voice.

"I've accepted it already, long before I even had the displeasure of laying my eyes on you. We're all going to die one day, whether we like it or not. We don't have much of a say in these things, you know. Never have, and never will." I say, climbing out of the coaster car and taking a small trembling step towards Howl.

"I don't believe you've _completely _accepted it. I don't believe anyone has, to be honest. Not even me, or Stone, or your little friend Skandar," Howl says, a few tiny bits of vulnerability leaking into her words, though she stops this near the end and turns cruel again. I shrug, taking another step towards her, though this one being much larger. "I agree, I guess."

"How do you guess?" Howl snorts, suddenly appearing right before me. "For I am most definitely right."

I move back, a bit startled, before tackling an entirely different subject. "Well… take you, for example. You've done some pretty terrible things in your lifetime, but that doesn't necessarily make you a terrible person. Not even a bad one."

Howl is obviously thrown off by this, and punches the side of my head before I can blink.

And I tumble onto the ground. I recover quickly, however, and stand as far away from her as possible, without crashing into the oddly sharp trees below the platform. Coughing, I start to explain myself.

"Everyone is at least a person, Howl."

"What's _that _supposed to mean?" I shove at her, trying to create a protective bubble around myself.

"You know what it means." I say slowly. "Baron was a person, so matter how horrible he treated others. Stone was a person, somewhere under all of that bloodlust. Amanda was a person – a weird one, at that. Skandar was a very lovely person, and I don't understand why you killed him. Then again, we're in the Hunger Games and I suppose that at this point, most actions have lost their reason. Willow is a person, no matter how you shape her. But most of all, you're a person. You're misunderstood, and you crave attention, don't you? So you do unnecessary things, such as killing helpless people and reserving a twelve-year-old for killing rights and – ''

A hard, brutal fist into my stomach before I can finish, and I'm screeching. Howl stands over me with a rather heavy-looking stone, and I shut my eyes tightly… as I slip the knife into her stomach, causing her to drop the stone. It lands squarely on my right wrist, and I hear an ugly crack as pain sets into my wrist. I ignore it as much as I can, grabbing the rock with my left hand as Howl rolls around on the ground. I launch the stone at her head, and hear her give out one last shriek as it collides with her skull.

**District Eleven**

**Willow Lockett's POV**

A cannon sounds. The fourth one today, to be precise. As everyone most likely knows by now, I'm always _very _precise.

I sit out in the open, hugging my knees to my chest. Not because I am frightened, or suddenly turned soft; simply because it's rather cold right now and the thin jacket wrapped around my shoulders doesn't help much. Besides, it's almost pitch-black outside and nobody will be able to see me.

When I say nobody, I'm speaking of the three people walking sluggishly past me, oblivious to my presence. They also don't seem to see the petite figure stalking them.

A strange haze sets over my eyes, trying to adjust to the darkness maybe, as I hear the awaited scream of agony and cannon. The figure runs away, with one of the people shouting things at the figure and the other kneeling down next to the corpse.

"River!" a voice wails, that I recall to be Mackenzie Taner from District Ten. I piece together that the yelling person must be Jace, then.

Jace says something to Mack, forcing him to leave their fallen friend before screaming out a curse that's directed to Mellow Monack, whom I suppose was the stalking figure.

After that show is over, I stare up at the sky and patiently wait for the anthem. Soon enough, it's come on and I can finally see who has died.

First up is Howl, which doesn't make much sense. I suppose that she can be beaten physically, but that girl was quite skilled with mind-games. And everyone knows that mind-games are always nearly impossible to win. Then Viktor Blake shows up, and I accept this. He messed around a lot on the last day of Training, with River, whom also died today. Skandar Dagwood appears in the sky, and I wonder how Luciana feels. She must be incredibly saddened, though she is still alive, remarkably. I wonder the same for Lace Chandler once Arlin's stony face is shown. The two were extremely fond of each other, clearly. Lastly, River's strangely cheerful face is in the sky. I remember her death, as it happened mere minutes ago.

Quickly, my brain reviews the now-remaining tributes; Jax Hood of District Three, Max Leo of District Four, Jace Leighton of District Five, Luciana Sage of District Seven, Mellow Monack of District Eight, Lace Chandler of District Nine, Mackenzie Taner of District Ten, and _me._

I'm alone, which is the way I prefer to be.

**Viktor Blake**

**Arlin Tainte**

**Skandar Dagwood**

**Howl Draconix**

**Riverann Booe**

**My heart is broken; I loved all these fictional creations too much for my own good. Skandar was my second-favorite character out of everyone, and it just killed me to see him go. Same with everyone!**

**I apologize to these character's creators, they were all such lovely tributes that I adored writing.**

**So, yes, we are in the Final Eight. Now that we're really getting down to business, who do you think will win? **

**Also, who was the most unexpected death of this chapter? There were a lot, after all.**

**Review, my sweets! :)**

**~We must be killers, children of the wild ones. Killers, where we got left to run?~**

**We Must Be Killers by Mikey Ekko**


	18. Stop and Stare

**Evil snicker, evil snicker! Do we have s'more action in the Games today? Nocerritos! Today we have a kinda-sorta-in-a-way family chapter! As in, the Final Eight interviews!**

**Today's song is Stop and Stare by OneRepublic!**

**Uh, yeah. So there are eight POVs today (of the family members and all, I mean)**

**Jax's Father, Mac Hood's POV**

"What if they ask?" Alice hisses, narrowing her brown eyes into slits as we wait off-stage. I clench my fists together, groaning in exhaustion of having to explain this whole thing _again._

"I told you." I snap angrily, "We don't tell them anything if they ask! We'll just say we love Jax, hope he's safe, so on and so forth."

Alice does not look convinced.

"It's foolproof."

She rolls her eyes before stepping onto the stage, turning her twisted scowl into a pleasant beam for our interviewer, the one and only ridiculous Fanta Fre.

Fanta ushers us over to a couch, her radiant hair gelled up into something that slightly resembles a cone. Her skin is glittering, and an irritatingly fake smile lights up her face, no pun intended.

"Hello, Alice and Mac Hood, the proud parents of District Three's Jax Hood!" few cheers are given out, since most of the Capitol is rather grumpy because only one Career boy has managed to slip into the Final Eight, which is considered the most resourceful and strongest tributes, logically.

Fanta turns to us. I get the nagging feeling that I should be friendly, or at least greet the silly woman. "Hello, Fanta. We're _very _happy to be here!"

Alice mutters something under her breath, but I give her a sharp glance to keep her quiet. She maintains a serene smile after that, but I know that she isn't very happy to be here at all. She doesn't want to support our son, nor do I.

**Max's Sister, Emma Leo's POV**

I readjust the bright bow in my blonde hair, fiddling with it until the red thing is in its place once again. I do this as my mother greets the funny-looking lady, whom my mother calls Fanta.

"And you are…?" a strange voice says, causing me to creak my head up. It's the Fanta woman, her lips curled back into a smile.

"My name is Emma," I mumble, turning to stare at the ground. "Max is my brother."

"You two look very much alike," Fanta says, though I assume she's lying. Max and I have the same blonde hair, but the similarity ends there. My skin is much paler than his, my eyes an entirely different shade of brown. Plus, he's tall and fit whereas I am skinny-boned and a bit small for my age.

I nod in response, hoping I'll be able to stay silent for the rest of the interview. I just want to go back home to District Four, and take a very long _nap_.

My mother and Fanta chat more, and I drown them out in my thoughts. How is Max, right now? I wonder if he's hurt. I wonder if he's sad that Howl died. I wonder if he's still sad that Bella died. Or maybe he doesn't even get sad anymore, I wouldn't know.

"What about you, Emma?" I tilt my head upwards, to look at the woman again.

"Huh?" I say quietly, a little confused. I expect her to be angry, but Fanta keeps her smile. "What's it like to watch your big brother be famous, on television?"

I know that my mother expects me to lie. To say it's fabulous and I grin every time his dirt-caked face pops up onto the screen. I don't want to upset my mother, so I force a smile.

"Wonderful."

**Jace's Uncle, Rennie Leighton's POV**

"We just love Jace _so _much, and we're _so _proud of him, and we're _so _happy to be at the Final Eight interviews, and he's just _so _kind, and he's _so _special…" my wife, Trella, says between sobs, cracking at the end. I awkwardly sling my arm around her shoulder, wondering what the Capitol people think of us so far. We're two minutes into the interview and Trella is already crying…

Fanta pretends to wipe a tear from her eye, before turning to me. "And what about you, Rennie?"

"I think the same as Trella."

Since my response is so dull, Fanta's face flickers to irritation for one moment. She quickly returns to her signature smile, however, as if the change of facial expression never occurred.

"What do you think of Jace's current situation?" Fanta asks eagerly, clasping her hands together.

"I think he's doing very well," I reply, my answer simple and short.

Fanta isn't impressed by this, and leads our conversation on by asking, "How so?"

"Well, he's hardly injured. And he has an ally." I respond, though I've never been much good at holding a nice, interesting conversation. Or socializing at all, to be frank.

"I see, I see," Fanta says, bobbing her head up and down in a nod. "What do you think of Jace's alliance, anyway?"

"Mack seems like a very nice person. Trustworthy, I suppose."

"You _suppose_? Ladies and gentlemen, I profess that Rennie Leighton is not positive that Mackenzie Taner is a trustworthy companion to his nephew, Jace Leighton!" Fanta shrieks out giddily, laughing as the Capitol people stare in shock.

I furrow my eyebrows. "That isn't quiet what I sa – ''

"Details, details!" Fanta waves the topic off, before switching over to a new one. "If you aren't even sure of Jace's current ally, what did you think of his last ones?!"

**Luciana's Brother, Lukas Sage's POV**

My parents babble on about Luciana and how much they miss her and love her, while I awkwardly stand off to the side with tears attempting to infiltrate my eyes.

"She's such a nice little girl," Mother sniffs loudly, her face crinkling up in sadness. My father pats her back supportively, also a bit choked up with the nagging feeling of what's going on in the Games right now.

"What do you think, Lukas?" Mother calls over to me, startling me a bit though I was listening intently. I nod, though I know it isn't much of a response.

As my parents return to their nonstop talking, I let myself think about Howl. Luciana killed her… she _killed _a girl, but it was necessary. It was self-defense, really. It was rather obvious that Howl was ready to cut my sister open and pour salt into the wounds. She was ready to torture her like Stone tortured the girl from Five, to let her suffer until it got boring.

If Luciana had died yesterday, I don't know what I would have done. I remember what I was like during the fight; frozen and breathless. I couldn't tear my eyes away from the screen, the immense fear for my sister eating me alive.

When I saw that she had lived, I broke into tears and a wide smile at the same time.

Then, the fear twists my insides around again. What is going on with Luci right now? Is she alright? Is she even alive at all? I won't know until tonight.

It's agonizing, really.

**Mellow's Mother, Fox Monack's POV**

"I just don't understand," I say numbly, the words rolling off my tongue with an unusual ease. "She's never hurt anyone in her entire life."

Fanta nods sympathetically as my other daughter, Lane, begins to cry. "What_ever _is wrong, little Lane?" Fanta questions, something of a smile splitting across her face eerily.

Lace sniffs. "Mellow s-scares me now."

Fanta cocks her head to one side. "What's wrong with that? We all have fears; yours just happens to be your mental case of a sister." I stiffen at the use of the term 'mental case'.

"She's still her sister," my husband, Rocks, speaks up, a bit angrily.

"And?"

"You wouldn't want to be afraid of someone you've trusted and adored for so long. You really wouldn't, Miss Fre."

Fanta flinches a little, since she _insisted _that we call her Fanta throughout the interview, but the peculiar woman does not falter. She steps a bit closer to us, using an incredibly affectionate voice when she finally speaks.

"There are times when fear is necessary, my dears," she says, with a smirk.

**Lace's Brother, Satin Chandler's POV**

"Um," I mumble, my gaze fixated on the ground. "She's a really lovely person all around."

The rest of my family nods in an awkward agreement. Lace was closest to me, I believe, maybe a bit closer to our mother, but we were practically inseparable. She couldn't walk down the streets on our district without me, because we were each other's rock.

She kept me grounded when I was over my head.

Fanta nods, blatantly hungry for more answers, but I'm not sure if anyone else in my family knows too much about Lace. Other than my mother, I mean. I know that my older sister, Plaid, has something against Lace. Perhaps for snatching the attention away, perhaps for being different. I don't really want to know, since Plaid is a bit of an outsider in our family.

"Lace is a blessing," Mother says, turning Fanta's attention to her.

"She seems like a very nice girl from the footage we've seen," Fanta says, smiling at my mother. Mother returns the smile. "What did you think about _Arlin_?" Fanta asks, tackling a rather sensitive subject. Most of my family loved Arlin, though Plaid constantly insisted he was going to betray Lace.

"She's a _fool_," Plaid would snap. It was satisfying to see Plaid be proved wrong, but terrible to watch the boy who had protected my sister for so long die.

But, as it seems, everything good will eventually die. Even the stars.

**Mack's Friend, Beverly Tei's POV**

I am here, in the Capitol, being interviewed, because all of Mack's is dead. They found the next best thing instead of leaving him out. A friend.

I suppose I'm pretty close to Mack, behind Jordan. But Jordan is dead.

So, if Mack wins, I will be the one expected to comfort him. I will have to fill up the hole that's been made by Jordan's death. I will have to hold the light and hope, and give it to him when he comes back.

I'll have to hold all the light until I burn out.

"Beverly?" Fanta snaps me out of my daydreaming, a tint of irritation in her voice. Though when I turn my head to glance at her, slightly mortified, she still has that undying pleasant smile stuck to her face. It's a bit creepy, how she manages to stick with that same smile all the time.

"Sorry," I say, grinning uneasily at the camera. Fanta laughs, waving it off as if she didn't mind at all. "It's nothing, dear."

I nod. "So, about Mack's alliance – '' Fanta is interrupted by the ringing of the timer, signaling the end of my interview and my cue to head back to my train. The train will take my back to District Ten, where I shall arrive just in time to watch the Games.

The dread inside of me is overwhelming once I step back onto the train.

"You alright?" the Peacekeeper in charge of supervising me grumbles, not glancing up from the papers he's examining. I look over at him for a moment, confused, before shrugging.

**Willow's Mother, Springys Lockett's POV**

"Willow is a darling child. I love her more than anything in the entire world; more than I've ever loved anyone before. She is as radiant as the sun, and has grown into a _very _nice young woman."

I gush all my words out, wiping a single tear from my right eye before staring expectantly at Fanta.

"I understand that you love Willow," Fanta says gently, looking as if she's about to ask another question. I don't care what she wants to talk about I just want Panem to know what a truly fantastic daughter I have.

"She's so clever, too," Fanta says, and I nod vigorously in agreement. Willow is obviously the smartest tribute in the Game; at least in my eyes.

As I keep nodding, Fanta continues. "Yet, I wonder, is her cleverness a _good_ thing?"

I stop nodding, and ponder it for a moment. "Of course it is. She can outsmart everyone else. She could win if she wanted to. She could kill everyone in that arena and leave without a scratch. She can do anything she sets her mind to, really, because Willow is a very efficient girl."

"Once again, is that a good thing?"

"Of course." I snap, and then my interview ends. I stomp off the stage, my mind flooded with questions that I want answers to.

I walk onto the train, taking a seat on the couch in front of the television. I most likely will not be back in District Eleven for the start of today's Games, so I'll have to watch a bit of it in this train.

Flipping through the channels, I stop on a discussion of the remaining eight tributes between two Capitol people I've never heard of. There's a woman with cotton-candy-esque fluffy white hair, and a man with long black hair in braids. They go on about Mackenzie Taner for a while, calling him an _underdog_, before switching to my Willow.

The first words to come out of the man's mouth are, "What a waste of a young heart."

**DON'T KILL ME! I'm a terrible person, I know, and I suppose I've just changed the update day to Sunday.**

**This is much shorter than usual. I'm so sorry! DX I was really busy this week, and could hardly get on the computer on the weekend. I wrote the last three POVs on my iPod, and had to copy them onto the document.**

**I hate this chapter, and most of it was a rush job. So… sorry D:**

**Does anyone like my new pen name? :)**

**Again, I'm so sorry. **

**Review, once you've put your pitchforks and torches down!**

**~Stop and stare, I think I'm moving but I go nowhere. Yeah, I know that everyone gets scared, but I've become what I can't be~**

**Stop and Stare by OneRepublic**


	19. Seven Devils

**Hola, my bunnies! **

**Hey, do my nicknames for y'all ever annoy you? Or scare you? I've been wondering…**

**Day Eight of the Games today! The song is Seven Devils by Florence and the Machine.**

**Four POVs today! I'm gonna have to start writing less, unfortunately, since we have so few tributes left.**

**Day Eight**

**District Nine**

**Lace Chandler's POV**

In my quiet little mourning, I learn that it's hard to forgive..

I want to forgive him because I can understand how he feels, but I can't forgive him because he _killed _a fantastic person, and he should know better than that… but he's scared, like we all are. We're all kind of the same person, in an odd way. We're all scared little rabbits, though bravery has probably stomped over a few of our former selves.

The tributes are narrowing down, and I'm afraid that at this point in the Games, you're already dead. The person you were when you came in here is _dead_. You're brand new, seeing out of brand new eyes in a paranoid perspective, hearing little noises that the old you never would have heard.

The thought of Arlin once again invades my thoughts, turning everything a bit depressing. Almost everything I've done since his death was done with a tint of sadness, though I haven't done much at all.

I froze over his body for a few horrendous seconds, before I registered that he was dead and I was alive. After that, I scurried away, keeping my head low, until I stumbled into the oversized teacups that I am residing in now.

The one I am in is an azure blue, with a white stripe around the middle of it. It conceals me, and that's all that I care about.

Sincerely, I simply want to hide in this teacup for the rest of the Games until somebody comes and kills me. But I fear that the Gamemakers would become angry with my resistance to play the Game, and would kill me themselves, most likely in a very painful way. This isn't how my family would want me to be thinking, I know, but I have lost the strength to even attempt to change.

I don't know if I want to die, though. Honestly, all I want is peace. I want to drift away, fade into nothing, and disappear. See Arlin again, and spend the rest of my time with _him. _That's all I want.

Joyful memories of Arlin creep into my mind, but I try my best to block them out. They're still there, of course, but I'm avoiding them.

Rather heavy breathing disturbs my vortex of thoughts, locking myself into a fetal position in order to remain unseen by whoever is breathing out there. I stay silent, like always. Over and over in my mind, I question myself – _Do I want to die?_

Over and over, I don't receive anything that even resembles an answer.

The person seems to stop right near my teacup, pausing to catch a breath. They cough a bit, before quietly saying some unintelligible thing. I do, however, hear the tone of their voice, and realize with a chill that it is the infamous Willow Lockett. She is, to be blunt, very bad news. I am quite relieved when she continues walking on, muttering under her breath, while I stay in my teacup like the coward I am.

**District Ten**

**Mackenzie "Mack" Taner's POV**

Jace and I shuffle along the dirt path, slowly but surely. We'll reach the tall tower ahead in time, hopefully sooner than later.

"We can steady ourselves, now that we're in so deep," Jace says, something resembling a smile twitching on his lips, "Nobody deliberately goes out to hunt anymore. I'm pretty sure everybody wants to stay safe and sound in a little corner just as much as you and I do."

"Yeah." I agree, nodding my head a bit as our stroll to the tower progresses.

Slowly but surely, still.

It feels like Jace and I are the last two people in the Games, but I know that isn't possible. There are six other tributes, other than us, and there haven't been any cannons so far. I'm not entirely sure if that's a good or bad thing. If there aren't any deaths for too long, I know that the Gamemakers will make something happen themselves.

Come to think of it, the Gamemakers haven't done much these Games. Only messes around with a few rides and attractions, I think.

So really, we've torn each other apart.

"What are you thinking about?" Jace questions as he hops over a rather large stone planted into the ground. "A lot of things," I answer honestly, realizing that Jace always seems to get easy answers from me, whereas he is a puzzle.

After about five minutes of silence, the tower is before us. I'm struck with worry, trying to remember why we wanted to come here in the first place. It looks dark inside, far too dark for comfort. The place fills me with anxiety, and I squirm awkwardly as I stare up at the thing. "I don't like this."

Jace doesn't respond, but I'm pretty positive that he heard me. He takes a step closer to it, jumping back at the startling cry for help that seems to come from inside. He turns to me, wide-eyed, as there's a dropping sound as the cries raise with alarm until silence takes over.

After a petrified sort of silence, I move forward slightly. Jace snaps out of his glazed phase, walking over to the entrance of the tower. I trail behind a bit, not very eager to see whatever just happened.

Jace takes a sharp breath, leading me to follow his gaze, my eyes widening at the mess.

A body _underneath _the actual thing that dropped, which looks like an elevator. It crushed the person, like a bug. Surely the actual ride this was based off wasn't this unsafe, but the Gamemakers had to build things dangerously to make it their own twisted definition of interesting.

Eyes never leaving the body, Jace speaks. "We're in too deep to receive a nice, painless death, Mack." Since I'm still too startled by the remains of whoever that was, I just nod.

**District Eight**

**Mellow Monack's POV**

Could have been any of the five that died yesterday. _Any _of their lives could have been ended by me. I have no idea which one it was, though I have a little hope that it was River. But then I have to scold myself for having such sick hope.

What if I killed the blind boy, Skandar? Or the little girl Howl? She was a delusional, yes, but she was still little.

_Was it Howl?_

For once, I wish that my voice would respond. But no quiet voice talks back to me, not a sound is made. Out of pure frustration, I dig the rather long nails on my right fingers into my left wrist. Once I realize what I'm doing, I snap my nails away from my wrist.

Now I really do feel crazy.

I've always been crazy, I suppose, since I've always had the voice. Even when I was young, I would complain about it to my parents and they would figure that I had a headache.

_Was it the boy from Six? Viktor?_

Again, I receive no response. It's almost as if my voice has gone away, which is extremely unlikely. So perhaps it's just trying to get me frustrated.

Gripping onto the tangled white tracks, I refrain from hurting myself again.

_You've officially gone nuts. _Followed by a mocking laugh.

_Was it Arlin Tainte?_

No answer. So it seems that my voice is taunting me. Telling me that it can choose to talk or not, but it just doesn't want to tell me who it is that I killed.

Maybe I should just kill myself.

I could let everything end, let the pain and guilt simply disappear. If I were dead, I would finally be able to let go of Wyatt. I wouldn't have to return home and face my family, who are most likely horrified by my behavior.

What do I have to live for? My sister would probably cry at the sight of me, and I don't know if my parents even want look at me.

"Um, are you alright?"

I scream, whipping my head around to stare at the boy that just spoke, which seems to be Max Leo.

The District Four guy. He was a Career, until they all died off. He killed Ren Hanapon in the bloodbath, and watched Wyatt die. He was friends with his district partner and earned a Training score of ten, one of the overall highest scores of the bunch.

"I'm okay…" I mutter, the fear still prominent.

"You were crying," Max states, causing me to reach my fingers up to my face and touch the trails left behind from the tears. That I didn't seem to notice.

Max doesn't say anything after that, and I wonder why he doesn't just kill me.

"Uh, Mellow," Max says awkwardly, "Do you want to be my ally?"

_Don't accept. It's too random. Too sudden. He'll tear you down, Mellow._

I smile. _That sounds quite promising. _

I lift my gaze up towards Max, and nod.

**District Eleven**

**Willow Lockett's POV**

I am on a quest to find somewhere to hide. Somewhere nobody would look, or be too discouraged to.

I have been walking along, trying to find somewhere, since I woke up this morning. Though I woke up considerably late, I've still been walking a very long time, and I only took one break to munch on a few berries.

Since I don't have anything to fill up my thoughts, I suppose I'll think about the seven – now six, though I'm not sure who died – devils surrounding me.

I'm not entirely sure where Jax has been all this time. I sort of wander around different spots in the arena and observe. I've observed almost every tribute at some point or another, but I haven't run into Jax this whole time.

Max Leo is a threat, clearly, with his high Training score and slight derangement. I don't think I would be able to kill him, or even harm him at all.

And then there is Jace Leighton. I kind of fought him the other day, but not very violently or for too long. Mack stopped him before one of us could kill the other, though I'm positive that both of us were completely ready to. I saw the hatred in Jace's eyes, though he may deny it. He wants me dead, I can tell. Subconsciously, even, if he won't admit it to himself.

Luciana Sage is nothing dangerous, I'm pretty sure. She most likely didn't kill Howl, though I wonder who did, and she's rather small. I'm taller than her, but just slightly. Luciana's allies are gone, so she's alone, and that makes her a terribly easy target.

And Mellow… No, I don't think I even want to look at Mellow. I don't want her to weaken me again, make me overthink things once more. She's in a relatively fragile state herself, however. Mellow doesn't handle death very well, and she still has Wyatt's death weighing her down. She'll self-destruct eventually.

Mack's description is identical to Jace's, in my mind. He hates me. He seems to loathe a lot of people, though that might just be my point of view.

I stop, panting, as I eye the large Ferris wheel. I've seen it in the distance, but never been at the location myself. I shuffle over to the compartment nearest the ground, carefully prying open the door and taking a seat just as the anthem comes on.

Only one face is shown, which turns out to be Jax Hood, the boy from District Three. So Three doesn't have a chance anymore.

It's kind of weird, how everybody dies off. But that's the way it goes.

**Jax Hood**

**So, uh, guess who's still a horrible person? **

**I'm going to get rid of the update deadline, because I can never make it. So I will just update when I can, 'kay? Sometimes in four days, sometimes in ten. **

**Welp, RIP Jax :(**

**Bee tee dubs, I'm beginning to plan my next SYOT. If you have any songs or titles or anything to suggest for it, tell me! :)**

**Review!**

**~Seven devils all around you, seven devils in your house. I was dead when I woke up this morning and I'll be dead before the day is done~**

**Seven Devils by Florence and the Machine**


	20. Werewolf

**Hello, young cornflakes! Day Nine of the Games today!**

**The song for this chapter is Werewolf by CocoRosie. This is my favorite song ever, and I just love it so much asjdfl**

**Four POVs today. **

**Yeah, time to write!**

**Day Nine**

**District Seven**

**Luciana Sage's POV**

My eyes spring open, and I sit straight up. In a paranoid matter, I survey the area around me, trembling a bit. I don't see anything out of the ordinary, since I've grown quite used to the eerily happy faces painted onto the bright yellow duck's faces.

The kiddie rollercoaster has proved itself safe so far. I cried, _again_, most of yesterday, for Skandar and for Arlin and for the fact that I didn't know where Lace was. But mostly for Skandar. It was almost identical to my reactions to Ren's death, except there was nobody to attempt to comfort me.

I'm all alone now. I suppose I'll just hide in this rollercoaster until something comes along and kills me. But when I really think about it, I don't want to die. I guess that I probably just want to be out of this arena, but that obviously isn't going to happen. So when I do die, I just want it to be fast.

I think that a lot of the time, people's problem with death is that it requires pain. And pain demands to be felt. There's also the fact that you're gone, you disappeared, but many people want that kind of thing. It's just that there's pain involved.

My mind keeps looping around to the same thing, and I don't like it. I want to think about something else.

To try to make my mind wander, I stare up at the sky. It's extremely cloudy right now, and it looks a bit like it's going to rain. Fake rain, though. Fake sky, fake clouds, fake everything. All that is in this world is _fake_.

I hate fake things. And now I'm living in a completely false world, and I'm going to die in a completely false world.

With a sudden jerk, the rollercoaster begins to move. I pause for a moment, terrified, before I attempt to get out. Only to fall back down. I glance down, seeing that the seatbelt seems to be stuck, the small one that wraps around my waist_._

I swallow, before pushing down onto the release button to no avail. Then, I start to panic.

The ride is pretty smooth, at least, with the exception of being weirdly fast for a kid's ride. I almost want to sit back and enjoy it, but I know that this must be a trap. So I go on trying to release myself.

Something snaps, and I creak my head around to see what it was, when the seatbelt finally releases me. I cry out in glee, lifting my smiling head up, only to frown again.

For a moment, I'm spiraling through the air, and the next there's a _snap _and I'm lying on the ground in what feels like a terribly unnatural position. I can't see what just happened, but my entire body is numb.

Then my body turns to _fire. _Real, actual flames licking at my flesh are what I feel. I attempt to open my mouth to scream, but realize a bit too late that I'm paralyzed.

So this is how I'll die. With a snapped spine or whatever just happened, and then burn to a little crisp. The pain keeps on thriving, and I know that I must not have much time left. Ten seconds, maybe. I prepare myself to leave this world, thinking of my last goodbyes.

The goodbye I've crafted for my father is cut short by the boom of my cannon.

**District Nine**

**Lace Chandler's POV**

I want to hop onto a small boat and sail away from this place.

I don't believe I've ever hated something as much as this. I used to loathe walking through District Nine, keeping my head low to avoid all the stares, but this is _so _much worse. Especially since I'm here alone, with everybody around me wanting to kill me.

And somebody died just about ten minutes ago, so that means I'm one of the last six. Funny, I don't feel very happy about that.

Then again, there isn't much to feel happy about. Surviving longer means enduring longer. More memories, more mental damage, if you manage to make it out alive.

I'll just stay here in my blue teacup until all the bad things are over.

But I don't know if that's really possible. I don't know anything anymore. _Will _all the bad things go away? Not completely, obviously, but will these terrible sorts of things stop anytime?

I blink confusedly when I notice that the temperature around me is rising. I twist around to meet flames, alive and burning, mere feet away from my teacup. I make a surprised squeaky sound, before leaping out of the cup in a craze and banging my knee on the ground. I grunt, picking myself up once again, and sprint away from the now-flaming teacups.

Though limping, I manage to escape the burning area. The smoke rises high into the sky, trying to blend in with the gray color of it to no avail.

I need to find a new place to stay, since I've hereby declared that I don't want to die. It's kind of hard to know that unless death is in front of you, and you're about to be taken.

So, still limping a bit, I go on my way to find a new hiding spot.

**District Four**

**Max Leo's POV**

"Oh, hi, Mellow," I say, greeting the small girl as I see her. She's sitting near the boarding area for the rollercoaster, leaning against the wall with a blank expression on her face. She doesn't respond to my greeting, and acts like she hasn't heard me at all; just keeps staring straight ahead at _nothing._

"What?" Mellow mutters, lowering her gaze before snapping her head back up. "Sorry. Hi."

"It's fine." I say, offering a ghostlike smile before sitting down next to her, setting my spear next to her. Mellow seems a bit discomforted by this, but doesn't say anything. I've noticed, in the little time I've known her, that Mellow is a bit of a doormat. She lets people walk all over her, and manages to hide her emotions quite well.

She's much different from Bella, that's for sure. Bella was loud. She spoke what she thought and she was proud of what she thought. She hid things too, but not nearly as much as Mellow does.

"What were you thinking about?" I question Mellow, suddenly turned timid. She keeps her staring solidly focused on the ground, fiddling with her hands a little as she answers me nervously. "Nothing." But I can tell she's lying, by the way she says it, all weak and foreign-sounding.

"No, really," I say, turning my smile softer and therefore more consoling. "Is something bothering you?"

Mellow stiffens, before a few words slip through her mouth. "Sort of."

"Like what?"

She bites down onto her bottom lip for a moment. "Well, have you ever had a really bad feeling that everything is your fault? Like, somehow all the terrible things in the world are because of you? Kind of like you've killed a bunch of people and you're the only one left." Mellow speaks, her voice strangely quiet. I can hardly hear her.

"I've never felt it like that, but I think I know what you're talking about. Why do you ask?" I respond, then shoot out another question.

"I feel like that now, sort of." Mellow says, her voice barely above a whisper.

I take a couple seconds to process all of this. "Mellow… is this about Wyatt? Or Solstice? Because those aren't your fault. Really."

"That's only part of it." Mellow states. The pain swimming around in her eyes makes me a little sad, the honesty mixing into the pain and hurting her. She's confused, obviously, but I don't know what she's confused about. Maybe not confused, maybe debating something. All inside her mind, though, so I don't have a clue.

"Then what's all of it?" I ask, hoping I'm not pushing her too much.

"All of it is too hard to explain. But it's like – like when that one person you barely knew died. And you feel bad for them, and people say they miss them, but they're lyingand you know they're lying because they barely knew them, same as you. You want to miss them and you want to talk about how great they are but you just can't because you didn't know them enough but you want to but you _can't_ and that gets under your skin and everything mixes together and everything feels so breezy and unimportant but it's your life so it has to be important, right? Everything has to be important in its own little way, but you can't force yourself to feel that way. And you want to stop but you can't. You just really can't and that hurts you and then the things you loved die and then you're all alone even when they are other people around and you can't take it because it's too hard and you're not a strong person and it's just too hard!" Mellow starts off quietly, but her voice rises and when she's done talking, it's metamorphosed into shouting. She's wrapped her hands around each other so tightly that her nails are digging into her skin, most likely leaving marks.

"Mellow, are you okay?" I question, quite worried about the girl. She looks at me for a moment, before I see a tear run down her cheek. Just like yesterday.

"No, I'm not." Mellow says, taking a deep breath. "I'm not because I'm insane and I can't ever be okay. Because it's there, it's always there, and it won't leave me alone."

"What's there?" I say, terribly confused by now. Mellow stands weakly, taking a moment to lean against the wall as if she's too frail to support herself. She stares at oblivion for a moment more, eyeing the rapidly setting sun, before responding.

"Because I can't shake it off and I can't get better and I'm just too wobbly to do anything about it anymore."

I sigh. "I have no idea what you're talking about, but it doesn't sound too good." This comes out somewhat humorous, though I never set out for it to be like that.

In one swift move, Mellow snatches up the spear and before I can protest, sticks the weapon into her neck. It slides through the pale skin easily, creating a messy hole as blood immediately begins pouring out of the wound. She staggers backwards, bumping into a wall and falling to her knees.

Though I'm stunned for a moment, I hurry over to her just as her cannon rings out. I swallow my spit, staring at the wide eyes and the small lips and the bright red hair.

And then, tentatively, I close her eyes. I didn't know Mellow for too long, I'll admit it, but I do know that she deserves to be safe, sleeping soundly in her own little world.

**District Five**

**Jace Leighton's POV**

Mack and I are silent while the anthem plays, and it turns eerie once the little girl from Seven, Luciana, looks down upon us. Something pangs in me, but I must remind myself that it was expected. Next is Mellow Monack, whom mostly everyone feared. I just wonder who was gutsy enough to even _try _to kill her?

"Isn't it kind of weird?" Mack says aloud. "They're all dead… but it doesn't feel like they are. Not unless you see them dead, not until you really realize they're gone… I just can't wrap my mind around the whole thing."

I nod. "Like the Mellow girl. It doesn't seem like she could have actually died." Most likely, I'm just not accepting it.

We're both silent for a moment, before I speak up. "You do realize we need to split off, right?" It's true, at least. We're getting so close to the end; this is the point where alliances crack.

"Right now?" Mack asks, seeming a bit surprised.

"Preferably," I say, with a shrug, before adding, "Not to be mean or anything."

Mack stands, picking up his backpack and dagger. He turns to me, the moonlight making his small smile visible. "Good luck," Mack says, before saluting me and starting down a new path.

"Best of luck," I mumble, becoming aware that it's a bit late for that.

It's unreal, though. How close I am to home. Who's left again? I mentally go over the remaining tributes; Max, Lace, Mack, and Willow. I know I couldn't kill Mack, but the others… I'm not sure about them, yet. I need more time to think about this.

In the darkness, I realize that I _do _need more time. I need a lot more time, but it's not like I'm going to get it.

**Luciana Sage**

**Mellow Monack**

**This was terrible to write, oh my gosh. I must thank our little infinity and KnockingBells for creating such amazing characters. I loved Luciana and Mellow to death I can't even right now**

**Gah, final five. This is scary! Like, literally. I have no idea how I got this far. **

**So, big question. Who do you want to win, and why? **

**Review! **

**~I don't mean to close the door, but for the record, my heart is sore. You blew through me like bullet holes; left stains on my sheets and stains on my soul~**

**Werewolf by CocoRosie **


	21. I Will Not Bow

**I can't even say anything right now oh my gosh after this chapter that's IT GUYS OH MY GOD.**

**Last day of the Games and I want to cry. The song is I Will Not Bow by Breaking Benjamin, which I thank Miss Mockingjay for suggesting to me. **

**So, this is like part one of the last day, so the Victor and all will be next chapter.**

**I'm going to start writing before I get all teary-eyed and sappy, okay?**

* * *

**Day Ten**

**District Ten**

**Mackenzie "Mack" Taner's POV**

I've had, overall, four allies and only one of them is still alive.

That's the way it goes, I know. I've heard the expression many times before, mostly when watching commentary on the Games, but a few times outside of that, too. My father's funeral, I think, I heard someone muttering that whilst gazing at the rather pathetic sight of me. _Poor thing, _I heard many times before. And while it was true, it still bothered me.

I remember the beginning of the Games, when Jordan first died, and I was alone for about a day until Jace and the others found me. I thought I was going to have be all alone, the entire time, and I wondered how I would face it.

Turns out I didn't actually need to be thinking that. But now I do.

Which leads to me another, slightly more difficult subject. Which is the subject of Willow. Out of all the other tributes, I believe Willow to be the biggest threat. Mellow _was_ the biggest threat, never mind if she meant to be or not, but she's dead now, which kicks Willow up to the top spot. She's been alone this whole time, and I highly doubt she's minded much. She's slept so long without others, and I don't think she's had nightmares.

With a sigh, I turn around the corner, launching myself into a bright room. Instinctively, I shut my eyes tight. Once I open them, I give them a minute to readjust before glancing around the room.

Mirrors, all around me. They're here, they're everywhere… With a snap, I realize that the mirrors are meant to be the walls. Quite tricky. Then a startling question appears, one I can't shake: How many of my fellow tributes have lost their lives in here? At least one, probably.

In a rather sad attempt to find my way through this thing, and maybe a hiding spot, I step right into a mirror.

I curse under my breath, before taking a moment to examine my nose. It doesn't look bruised, or even hurt much at all. Just the annoyingly prominent pain that you feel when you get a little hurt, I suppose.

As I close my eyes in some poor attempt to ignore the fading pain, I manage to slip.

And then I'm on the ground again. I groan, helping myself up once more, before the lights turn off.

I ignore it, feeling around to try to get into a safer part of the place, until something grabs me. It's much stronger than I am, and shoves me into one of the mirrors. After my head makes contact with the mirror, I don't really know what happens. Maybe I fell unconscious, or maybe I'm just dead.

**District Eleven**

**Willow Lockett's POV**

If you loved someone, would you love them for what they were or would you love them for what they were when you first starting loving them?

It's possible to stop loving someone, I think, since my father stopped loving me. He began hating me, even, while my mother was still convinced that I was the same person I was at four years of age.

I stopped loving my parents, but that's much different.

A cannon booms in the distance, disrupting my thoughts.

With a sigh, I begin to fiddle around with my fingers. There isn't too much to do anymore, now that mostly everyone's dead and I like my little spot. I'm hungry, but I finished off the last of my berries yesterday. I'll hold off eating until I win, and it isn't going to be too long. I just have to be patient and let them kill each other, one by one if that's what it takes.

A bird flies down, landing a few feet in front of me. I glare at it, though it doesn't seem to notice. I wonder for a moment how long the bird – or _birds_, even – have been in the arena. Why wouldn't I have noticed them before? Mutts, perhaps?

"Go _away_," I grumble, snatching up a pebble and launching it at the stupid thing. The bird doesn't even flinch.

I roll my eyes, turning away from it, when I see it finally fluttering away.

I expect silence to take over, now that I'm alone once more, but instead I'm treated with a rather hard blow to the right side of my head.

The punch knocks me onto the ground, though I regain my stance quickly. My vision is blurry for a couple seconds, but I blink the stuff out of my eyes and manage to see clearly enough to recognize the figure; Max Leo, District Four.

He looks somewhat… insane, really. His hair is matted, looking as tangled as hair that length can. His eyes, once bright, have a wild, feral sort of look to them.

The boy lets off some sort of growl, grabbing his spear, before lunging for me again.

I dodge it rather easily, though he lands on the ground near my feet and seeing his big chance, yanks my left foot from under me. My back collides with the hard dirt, and I'm sure a few sharp pebbles manage to dig themselves into my back.

With my right leg, I kick at his hand. He doesn't let go, but loosens his grip just slightly. Max stands, with me still kicking. I see the urgency of the situation, even if I can't really feel it for my own. I _see _the panic clearly, but can't quite force myself into it.

Once I see his spear is raised, I quickly kick is leg once more, with most of the might I can manage.

This causes him to stumble a bit, dropping the spear and also releasing me.

I spring up, turning on my heel and into my usual running position. Just as I take off, however, Max manages to grab hold of my hair, still in its neat blonde ponytail. I shriek, naturally, as he holds me down to the ground.

This may seem peculiar, or even, stupid, but there are very few things worse than someone pulling on your hair.

"Let _go_!" I screech, allowing the scream to drag on as the pain worsens.

And then, he does.

I don't take time to question it. I jump up, though my head's still throbbing, and clutch the spear as soon as I see it.

And still, he just stands there, not saying a word, not letting any thoughts leave his mind. I let out a heavy breath, before promptly shoving the spear into Max's chest, ignoring his small cry.

The blood spills over, but Max doesn't seem to care. He just falls over, staring at the sky, until he lets his eyes close and the cannon rings out.

I narrow my eyes, trying to figure out what game he just played. Suicide? Sort of, I guess. He let me kill him, just stood there, looking pretty defeated. He _let _me defeat him, and he let me go when he could have killed me quite easily. And I don't have the slightest idea why.

Timidly, I step closer to the body, clearing my throat before I speak.

"Rest in peace," I mutter, before turning away to find a new hiding spot.

* * *

**Mackenzie Taner**

**Max Leo**

**Terribly short, I know. But we are now in the final three, and the Victor will be revealed in the next chapter, which shall also be the last chapter of this story.**

**I apologize to Mack and Max's creator's; they were both lovely. (Issi, bbcakes, I loved Max to pieces)**

**I have a new SYOT open, in case any of y'all are interested. It's called Asylum, and the story and form are both up already. **

**So, big question is: Who do you want to win? Jace, Willow, or Lace? **

**Review, darlings :)**

**~I will not bow, I will not break. I will shut the world away. And I will not fall, I will not fade. I will take your breath away~**

**I Will Not Bow by Breaking Benjamin**


	22. Resolution

**Last chapter…**

**I shall not say anything in fear of giving something away. **

**The song is Resolution by Jon Brion. It's instrumental, and I **_**love **_**instrumental. It's just really beautiful.**

**Beware: horribly short chapter ahead.**

**Enjoy the last performance.**

* * *

**District Five**

**Jace Leighton's POV**

I never dreamt I could make it this far.

I never thought I would go too far. I'd accepted a long time ago that I would die, but now that I'm _so _close… I'm thinking that maybe I won't die. Maybe I _will _go home.

But the two others have to die before I can step foot on Five's ground again.

I try my best to steer away from that topic. I can't think about it. I don't want to think about it.

Though I do allow my mind to wander a bit, stopping on the question of how they're going to bring us together. They must have some trick up their sleeve; they always do.

But then I hear footsteps around the corner of the tower, travelling towards me speedily. I somehow push my fear to the side and ram myself into the tower, closing the doors behind me.

A sickening feeling flops around in my gut, but I ignore it. The Gamemakers wouldn't kill me themselves, not at this point. They want a fight, not a repeat of Jax's death. They want a _show._

I hear the thump of someone's body hitting the tower.

Tentatively, I rest my head against the wall in an attempt to hear what's going on outside more clearly. I hear a shout, though I can't quite make out what the person said. Then they shout again, and I realize with a heavy heart that Willow is the person shouting. Willow has made it to the final three.

There's yet another thud against the tower.

And then there's silence.

It's that terrible silence that makes you forget there's sound in the world at all. The silence that's only there when something's gone wrong, or when something bad happened.

A cannon booms, and then I _know_ I have to face whoever's out there.

Demurely, I open the door until it's wide enough for me to step through, clutching my knife as if it's my lifeline.

I inspect my opponent. Messy pale blonde hair, and even paler skin with little drops of blood in a few places. She's still small, still hauntingly childlike. She still looks like herself, standing over Lace's corpse with that blank expression. Yep, still Willow Lockett.

* * *

**Omniscient POV**

"Hi," the little girl speaks, her voice just as high-pitched and young as her appearance promises. She glances down at her disproportionately large feet, chucking them into the dirt softly, before returning her piercing stare to the boy.

"So it's just you and me," the boy, Jace, says, seeming a bit too jolted for his own good.

The girl nods, her ponytail bouncing up and down despite the disastrous state it's in.

A conflicted look emerges on Jace's face, but only for a few moments before returning to his poker face. He lets out a breathy sigh, glaring at the girl.

"So, Willow, aren't you going to kill me now?" he questions, his eyes fixated on her fingers curling around the bloodstained spear. She takes a moment to consider the question, or maybe just think of a clever response.

Then she shakes her head. "No, I don't think so."

Jace looks stunned, but the expression leaves quickly and changes to a confused look.

"What?"

"I've decided I don't really want to win." Willow announces, nibbling on her lip a little. "Because, realistically speaking… I don't care. I don't want to win. I don't want to lose. I'm… neutral, in a way."

"Neutral?" Jace repeats, blinking a few times.

"Yes."

"So… you want to _die_?"

"I'm neutral on just about everything, so… sort of, I guess." Willow responds, dropping the spear onto the ground and folding her hands together.

"Are you sure?" Jace asks, furrowing his eyebrows. In response, Willow nods, quite placidly, before she glances over at Lace's body.

Jace finds a question in this. "But then why did you kill Lace?"

"Because she attacked me first," Willow replies, "Plus, I wasn't finished thinking by the time she came along and cut me." She lifts up her sleeve a bit to reveal a little cut. Not very deep, but just enough to bleed some.

"You know, you should probably do something before they send something to get us." Willow says, glancing up at the sky for a moment before her eerie stare retreats back to Jace.

Jace doesn't say anything, but his nerves are blatant in the way he moves, so stiffly and trembling just enough to be noticeable.

Somewhat gently, he places his hands on both sides of Willow's head. And then, as she shuts her eyes, he hesitates. Most likely to the Gamemaker's relief, Jace's hesitation doesn't last too long. Quickly, he jerks the girl's head back, and hears the nauseating snap of her neck immediately followed by a cannon. Her body hits the ground, never to speak or breathe air again.

* * *

**Lace ****Chandler**

**Willow Lockett**

**So Jace won. I don't think anybody expected him to win; most of you were expecting Lace to win.**

**These tributes were like my children. Especially, no offense to anybody, Willow. Though mostly everyone disliked her, I will always love Willow. She was my favorite throughout most of the story, and it was just so sad to see her go. **

**And, totally copying JabberjayHeart here, could you be ever so kind to answer these few questions?**

**Who was your favorite character?**

**What was your favorite chapter?**

**Which death was the most unexpected?**

**Which death was the saddest, to you?**

**Who did you think was going to win? **

**Are you happy with the results?**

**I love you all! Thank you ****so much**** to anyone who even read this, and anybody that submitted. **

**(Bee tee dubs, don't look at the blog. Like, ever. It's terrible. I'm hoping the one for Asylum will be better.)**

**Though, I do have one more question that doesn't have to do so much with the story as it does me:**

**What do you think I need to work on most?**

**As in, writing-wise. I'm always looking for ways to improve my writing, and I'm well aware that it isn't anywhere near perfect. **

**Stay beautiful, lovely human beings :)**


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